Sweet Lily
by Jelli Bean
Summary: This is Lily's story. Based around Lily from her First Year at Hogwarts til the night she dies. Includes the Marauders, pranks, Voldemort and anything else I can come up with!
1. A Magical Beginning

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Sweet Lily

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Chapter One: A Magical Beginning

Lily Evans, an eleven-year-old girl from England, was currently sleeping peacefully in her bed. It was a fresh, new day of the summer. And any day of the summer was excellent, in Lily's opinion, as any day without school was a marvellous day. Even though she had over average marks in all of her subjects, it didn't mean that she actually _enjoyed_ the six hours studying in the building full of boys and girls of various ages. She was just naturally clever, as she was naturally pretty.

Lily hated her hair. It was a glorious red colour in the form of lush, buoyant curls. It was annoying to brush, but when it was groomed, Lily looked positively stunning. Her eyes were a bright green, glittering like polished emeralds. Lily's skin was fair and white, with just a sprinkle of chocolate freckles across her dainty little nose. She had a petite figure and a charm that impressed all. She was kind, polite, but at the same time, fun and irritating. Her parents adored her.

Petunia Evans, on the other hand, was Lily's fourteen-year-old sister. Petunia was also attractive in a way, but certainly not as much as Lily. Petunia had straight, shoulder length hair, which was a blonde colour, streaked with bits of brown. Her eyes were a cold sky blue and her skin fair aswell. She was kind of lanky and tall, with bony legs and a very long neck. Petunia was undoubtedly not as smart as Lily. She had to work harder to get a good result. She was haughty at times and showed little sisterly love, but that was considered normal. Petunia envied Lily with her intelligence and beauty, but never showed it. 

Mr Mark Evans and Mrs Laura Evans knew only of a tiny rift between their two daughters. They seemed blind to the fact that Lily and Petunia were constantly arguing and quarrelling behind their backs'. Mr and Mrs Evans were both awfully proud of their daughters, despite the fact that Lily and Petunia were like chalk and cheese. They just thought they were an ordinary, happy English family. 

Lily awoke from her slumber finally, just as the clock beside her bed struck ten in the morning. The girl yawned and stretched, thinking that this day was just another average summer morning. Lily stood up and dressed into some comfortable clothes, brushed her hair, brushed her teeth in the bathroom, and slowly stumbled down the stairs. 

"Morning, mum," Lily greeted sleepily, sliding into a chair at the four seated, oak table. 

Laura Evans was standing contentedly a few feet away watering a very green and leafy plant. She turned to her youngest daughter with the watering can still in her hand.

"Good morning, Lily. Tamara came over earlier. She's expecting you soon. I suggest you have breakfast then head down to her place," Mrs Evans said, smiling warmly. "And you've got a letter in the living room."

Lily nodded groggily, snatching an apple from the fruit bowl, rising to her feet and making her way out of the kitchen. 

The living room was where all the special meals were held. These included birthdays, Christmas, Easter and anything else that was remotely extraordinary. The floor in the room was covered with a soft, spongy pale green carpet. The walls were also green and the chandelier, when turned on, let off jade light instead of the plain yellow. The polished table glistened and shined with the emerald cushioned chairs. A single envelope lay alone on the table.

Lily picked it up, but nearly dropped it with shocked from what it felt like. It was made from parchment, strangely enough. The texture of the envelope was slightly rough and bumpy. It was a pallid yellow with elegant bottle green writing. 

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Miss L. Evans

Second Smallest Bedroom

67 Wingnut Close

Little Whinging 

Surrey

Lily scrunched up her nose in thought. They knew where she _slept_? Shaking it off, she turned it over. The envelope was sealed with a little picture of a snake, lion, badger and eagle surrounding a letter 'H'. Lily ripped the envelope open and pulled out a wad of parchment, not unlike what the envelope was made from. The letter itself was also written in the stylish green writing.

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HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIDARDRY

Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore 

(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock, Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)

Dear Miss Evans,

We are pleased to inform you that you have a place at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed list of all necessary books and equipment.

Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl no later than 31 July.

Yours sincerely,

Minerva McGonagallDeputy Headmistress

Lily stared, her nose all scrunched up. It was a habit she had kept all her life. What in the world was this letter going on about? Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry? What type of joke was that? Lily skimmed the books and equipment list. None of these things you could buy. Well, unless you bought one of the fake wands for young kids. 

Lily was jolted from her muddled thoughts when a loud knock sounded from the front door. She dropped the letter on the table and swung the door open. 

Lily's friend since grade two was standing in the doorway, a triumphant smile planted on her face. The girl was taller than Lily by barely an inch. She had ringlets the colour of dark chocolate dangling down past her shoulders. She had darker skin than Lily and dark, dark blue eyes.

"I was just heading over to your place," Lily admitted, letting Tamara through and leading her up the stairs.

"Well, I got here first," Tamara answered shortly, still wearing her mysterious smile as the two girls seated themselves on Lily's spongy bed. 

"_Why_ have you got that stupid grin on your face?" Lily asked irritably, curiosity getting the better of her.

"You got it," Tamara said briskly, grinning happily.

"Got what?" Lily inquired, very confused.

"The _letter_, silly! You got the letter!" Tamara squealed, bouncing on the bed, causing quite a racket.

"Will you keep it down! I'm on the _phone!"_ came an infuriated voice from outside Lily's room.

It was Petunia. Lily wrinkled her nose.

"Sorry, _Petunia_," she grimaced. "Now, 'Mara, what's this letter you're so excited about?"

Tamara's smile lingered for a second, her face falling.

"You mean you haven't got it?" Tamara said in a whisper. "But Father said it was sent. But then the Ministry aren't always that reliable. The charms might have gone wrong! I got mine though… Ugh!"

Lily stared at her babbling friend. Perhaps the parchment letter was it? 

"I did get a letter, Tamara," she confessed as Tamara's head shot up, her smile returning.

"Really? Where?" she said breathlessly, jumping to her feet and clapping her hands.

"Um… Downstairs. I don't know what's so special about it though," Lily said, puzzled as she ran down the stairs to catch up to Tamara.

Lily trailed after Tamara into the dining room, gesturing to the yellow paper on the table. Tamara snatched it up, whooping.

"This is it, Lily! This is the letter!" she shrieked, throwing the letter to the floor and hugging Lily tightly.

Lily embraced Tamara back, but with baffled thoughts zooming round her head.

"Tamara, what's going on? It's just some trick," she said.

"It's not a joke, Lily," Tamara began explaining, finally calming down. "You're going to Hogwarts! I'm going to Hogwarts! We're going to Hogwarts!"

Tamara let out another excited yell and danced round the table, Lily watching her.

"Hogwarts? Is it real?" Lily said.

"Of _course_ it's real, Lily! Father and Mother went there! And so does Nathaniel!" Tamara explained, sighing happily. "And now it's out turn!"

"I thought Nathaniel went to a boarding school in England?"

"Well, I couldn't really say that he went to Hogwarts, now could I? But when Father told me you were a witch, I came over he straight away! Mother says that we'll take you to Diagon Alley to get our school stuff in a few weeks. And she'll be coming to talk to your mum as well to explain about you being a witch," Tamara blurted, her grin never fading.

Lily was thoroughly bewildered now. Diagon Alley? Witches? Hogwarts? But her thoughts were interrupted by a loud rap at the door.

"That'll be Mother for sure," Tamara predicted confidently, following Lily to the front door.

Lily opened it and there stood a beaming Renata Scott. She had the same hair as Tamara, but her eyes were a periwinkle blue instead.

"Good morning, Lily," Renata greeted warmly. "I suppose Tamara spilt the news."

"Good morning, Ms Scott. She certainly did," Lily replied, returning the smile, but more uncertainly. "I'm afraid I don't fully understand though."

"That's quite all right. Oh, hello, Tamara," Renata added, noticing her energetic daughter in the background. "Lily, is your mother home? I've come to settle some matters."

"Yes. Come in."

Lily led Tamara and Renata into the kitchen where her mother was jiggling a teabag in a steaming mug.

"Renata! What a pleasure! Please have a seat," Mrs Evans welcomed her guest. "Would you like a cup of tea? Coffee?"

"Nice strong cup of black coffee, if you don't mind," Renata said, seating herself at the table. 

Tamara and Lily more noisily sat down side by side. Mrs Evans poured the boiling water into the cup and cautiously brought it over to the table and placed it before Renata.

"Now, what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?"

"Ah, yes," Renata said softly, sipping her coffee. "I do believe young Lily received a letter today."

"I have it!" Tamara chirped, throwing the envelope and its contents on the table.

Mrs Evans carefully picked it up, studying the letter intently. After a few minutes, she dropped it back on the table wearing a perplexed expression, not unlike Lily's.

"That is a most peculiar letter," she said lightly, taking a gulp of her tea.

"Yes, it would be to you," Renata agreed. "But to other people, Tamara and myself for example, it is completely normal."

Mrs Evans looked up from her tea and looked at Renata inquisitively.

"What do you mean?"

"Please don't be shocked, but I am a witch," Renata informed warmly. "Lily and Tamara also witches, and Hogwarts allows them to be trained up properly. It is a marvellous school and I do hope that you allow your daughter to attend."

Mrs Evans gaped wordlessly. Lily fiddled impatiently with her thumbs, waiting for someone to do something.

"How can that be true?" Mrs Evans whispered with wide eyes.

"Let me show you," Renata offered, putting her hands into her blouse and pulling out a long, thin stick of wood. "Hmm… Something simple will do."

Lily watched in awe as Renata swished the stick around and muttered something inaudible. Instantly, Renata's hair turned a bright, vivid pink. Tamara grinned at her mother and Mrs Evans gawked speechlessly. 

"If you allow Lily to attend Hogwarts, she'll be trained up to do things like that. You should be extremely proud. It is quite rare that a magical child was born into a Muggle family," Renata said, waving her stick again to make her hair the normal colour.

"What's a Muggle?" Lily spoke up, curious, her numbed senses going back to normal.

"Oops. Sorry, dear," Renata apologised.

Before Renata could answer, Tamara butted in.

"A Muggle is a person that is non-magical," she said cleverly.

Lily and Mrs Evans nodded in understanding.

"So, about this Hogwarts place," Mrs Evans said. "How would Lily be able get all the equipment? I'm quite sure that I've seen none of these things."

"Diagon Alley is the place," Renata answered. "I would kindly take Lily to Diagon Alley if you allow it."

"Well, it's worth a try," Mrs Evans said reluctantly, not really believing that witches and wizards existed. "But I would like to come along though."

"Of course. How about the fifteenth of August? I'll come by and drive you there," Renata said, sipping her coffee.

"That would be wonderful. Mark can look after Petunia as he has the day off," Mrs Evans granted, plucking a purplish cherry from the fruit bowl.

"Great. Now I really must be going. I've got a chocolate pudding in the oven," Renata said, gulping down the last of her black coffee and rising to her feet. "Lily is welcome to visit if she wants."

"Yes please!" Lily piped, jumping at the chance of visiting a real magical home. "Can I please go, mum?"

"Yes, Lily. But be home by five," Mrs Evans said, taking the two coffee mugs and placing them in the sink. 

"Thanks!" Lily said happily, following Tamara and Renata out the kitchen and through the front door.

"I can't believe that you're going to school with me!" Tamara cried merrily, skipping beside Lily.

"I know. I'm a _witch!"_ Lily exclaimed incredulously.

"Isn't that great? I thought we'd never see each other again until Father said that a letter was sent of to you!" 

The Scott house was just up the road from the Evans place. The Scotts' house was a two-storey home that looked extremely normal to Lily. There was a pebble path worming through the sweet-smelling garden of brilliantly coloured flowers right up to the front door. Renata opened the door and Tamara and Lily walked through.

Tamara ran through the house and began climbing the stairs with Lily in tow. But before they could reach Tamara's room, a tall boy blocked the way. He had dark hair and it fell over his green-blue eyes. He was wearing pale jeans and was purposely annoying his little sister.

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"Nathaneil!" Tamara shouted, pushing her brother in the stomach.

Nathaneil's cheeky grin grew wider.

"Why should I? I hear you're a witch, Lily?" he added to Lily.

Lily nodded weakly, smiling.

"I'll move if you tell me when we're going to Diagon Alley," Nathaniel said, crossing his arms.

"Fine. We're going on August fifteenth," Tamara responded. 

Nathaniel waved, turned around and walked into his own room.

"Nathaniel is _so_ annoying," Tamara complained, opening the door to her own bedroom.

"So is Petunia. Do you have any magic stuff yet?" Lily inquired, interested. "Your house looks so normal."

"I could show you my comics," Tamara suggested eagerly, beginning to bury through her desk drawers.

Tamara handed Lily a book. She stared in astonishment at the front cover. The pictures were _moving!_ The title, 'FELIA FISHHOOK THE FORGETFUL SORCERESS', was flashing orange and silver. There was a disorientated looking lady on the front. She was scratching her mop of violet hair. Other things, such as Muggle cars, people and other things were zooming around in the background.

"Wow," Lily breathed, turning the page.

"It'll be great at Hogwarts. Nathaniel said so too. He's in fourth year now," Tamara babbled.

"Where is Hogwarts?" Lily questioned absent-mindedly, flicking through the strange comic.

"Um… I don't know," Tamara said, furrowing her eyebrow. "No one knows I think."

The day sped by, and in no time at all, Lily was strolling back to her place.

~~~~~~~~~~

"Honey, time to rise and shine."

Lily moaned drowsily and rolled over, hoping that the voice would go away. It didn't.

"Lily, its half past nine. Renata is coming by in half an hour to take us to that Diagon Alley place."

This sparked Lily's attention. She opened her eyes and threw the soft covers off her body. Her mother was standing above her, looking down.

"I thought that would get you up," Mrs Evans said, a hint of amusement in her tone as she opened the door to leave. "But I advise you to hurry. The time it takes you to dress, you'll be ready by lunchtime if you're feeling quick."

Lily aimed a pillow at her mother, but missed by a mile. Mrs Evans laughed and left the room. 

Mrs Evans was of course exaggerating greatly when she commented on Lily's dressing speed. Lily was downstairs, dressed and cleansed, in a mere fifteen minutes, with another fifteen minutes to treat herself to a hurried breakfast. 

At last there came a knock at the door. Mrs Evans scuttled off to answer it and Lily quickly swallowed her last bite of blueberry jam toast, brushing away the many crumbs at the same time. 

"Lily! Diagon Alley! Wow! I can't wait! Can you?"

Lily didn't even have time to blink before she was practically squashed by Tamara, who had hugged her tight as, dancing around the room. Renata's laugh sounded in their ears and Tamara and Lily broke apart. Or rather Tamara freed Lily from her embrace. 

"Well, children," Renata said kindly. "I do advise we leave quite soon. The rush will be starting round eleven."

"How do we get there?" Mrs Evans inquired, swinging a bag over her shoulder as Renata led them to the door. 

Lily snatched up her own backpack and placed a green hat on her hair as Tamara threw her own bag over her shoulder. 

"We'll just use Cameron's car," Renata said.

"Won't it take a while to get to London?" Mrs Evans puffed, walking quickly to keep up with Renata's long strides. 

Renata chortled.

"Of course not! You could say that Cameron _upgraded_ the car with a few simple charms. I assure you that we'll arrive in good time."

The car was small and silver. Lily doubted that they'd be comfortable. But she was indeed wrong in judging a book by its cover. The car was actually quite spacious inside. At least five adult-sized people could sit comfortably on the backseat, if not more. 

Tamara climbed in with Lily in tow. The seats were bright red and extremely soft. Once they were all packed in the car, the engine roared to life. The car backed out of the driveway and began speeding along the road at an alarming speed. Renata and Tamara were at ease with the absurd velocity, but Lily and Mrs Evans were extremely startled.

"Aren't we going a tad fast?" Lily said emphatically, gripping the cushioned seat as they hurtled past a traffic jam.

"Oh, it might be to you. But to me, we're actually going quite slow," Tamara said nonchalantly.

It only took a mere twenty minutes to reach London. Renata screeched the car to a halt in front of a bookshop and announced their arrival. Lily and Mrs Evans stepped out of the car a little dizzily. Lily's mother was clutching her stomach and looking very sick.

"Don't worry, Laura," Renata told her jovially. "Wait til we get to the Leaky Cauldron. I'll shout for a round of drinks. That'll settle your delicate stomach down."

Mrs Evans straightened up a bit after being called delicate, but there was still a green tinge to her face. 

Renata with her click-clacking high heels led them down the street a little, then coming to a stop.

"Here's the place!" she declared, grinning.

Lily looked up. In the tiny space between a bookshop and a record store, there was a small, shabby pub. It was hardly noticeable.

"I don't see it," Mrs Evans remarked, looking at Renata questioningly.

Renata didn't look at all taken aback.

"Use your _mind_, Laura. See, that's the problem with Muggles. They keep their mind locked away behind bars," she said, shaking her head disapprovingly.

Mrs Evans squinted at the space, and then her eyes were wide with surprise.

"I see it!"

"Wonderful," Renata praised. "But we can't stand here all day admiring the fact that you can see it. We must go in!"

Tamara, Lily and Mrs Evans followed Renata up to the pub and into aswell. Inside, it was dim and dark. The wooden tables were only half full with odd strangers sipping their drinks and nibbling their meals. 

"Renata! Anything I can do for you?"

The person who spoke was the man wiping down the bar. He had only a few strands of hair and only five visible teeth when he grinned at the four girls standing in the doorway.

"Four of your special creation please, Tom!" Renata answered, seating herself on a stool at the bar.

Lily, Tamara and Mrs Evans followed suit and waited for their drinks as Tom vanished through a door. After a few minutes, Tom reappeared, carrying a four tall glasses with curly straws on a tray.

"Here we go. That'll be five Sickles and two Knuts," he said.

Renata handed him some silver and bronze coins that Lily didn't recognize. 

"Drink up, children," Renata instructed, taking a sip of her drink. "You'll need the energy in this before we go to Diagon Alley."  
Lily peered into her cup. It was filled with a suspicious vibrant blue liquid. 

"It's really nice," Tamara reassured eagerly.

She had already drained three quarters of her glass. Lily, feeling a little daring that day, began sucking the liquid through her pink swirly straw. Tamara was quite right in saying that it tasted nice. There was no word or sentence to describe it. The drink was sweet, but not too sweet. It sent chills and thrills running through her veins, causing goosebumps to sprout about. There were flavours of peppermint, sugar, cream, honey and a load of other things mixed up together. It was heaven. And it was all gone.

"Marvellous," Renata said when Lily looked up from her empty glass. "We must be off now. The crowds will be forming right about now."

They all stood up and followed her through the back door. Outside, there was only a small yard surrounded by a tall brick wall, almost blocking out the city sounds, but not completely. Renata took out her wand and began tapping bricks just above the rubbish bin. 

"What are you doing?" Lily asked curiously.

Before anyone could say a word, a huge archway appeared before them, revealing a semi-busy cobblestone street. It was a spectacular sight. Stores of every kind lined the street. People dressed in pointed hats and long, billowing robes filled the place, entering and exiting the shops calmly. 

"Wow!" Lily murmured, staring with saucer-sized eyes and a mouth that touched to the ground at the view. 

Tamara giggled beside her. 

"Come on, Lily. There's no time to stand around gawking!" 

Lily's mouth snapped shut and her focus travelled to Tamara.

"What?"

"I thought you were intelligent, Miss Lily Evans!" Tamara commented loudly, laughing. "But I'll excuse you this once."

"Oh, right. Where do we go first?" Lily said.

"Gringotts, I recommend," Renata suggested. "You'll be able to make an account, Lily!" 

"What's Gringotts?" Lily asked while trying to look at everything around her at once.

"An international wizards bank," Renata responded, leading them through the crowds. 

"It's run by goblins, Lily!" Tamara said elatedly. "I've seen them!"

"What!?" Lily and Mrs Evans said in unison.

"Goblins," Tamara said straightforwardly. "You know? The little green things with long fingers, big feet and nasty looks?"

"I thought that they didn't exist!" Lily exclaimed.

"Lily, you thought magic didn't exist," Tamara said truthfully, grinning.

Lily silently agreed. 

"Gringotts!" Renata stated.

An enormous gleaming white building towered above the whole street. They climbed the giant marble staircase up to the front doors. And much to Lily's shock and delight, two green goblins were standing haughtily outside the doors. They were about three-quarters of a head shorter than Lily with very green skin. Their hands, fingers, feet and toes were long and thin. Lily couldn't help but stare as they walked past the watching goblins.

Inside the building, hundreds more goblins could be seen darting about carrying and weighing rich treasures, leading people through tunnels and doors and doing other things you would not expect of little green beings. 

"This is unbelievable!" Lily breathed as Renata began talking to a goblin that was standing behind a counter.

"A Miss Lily Evans would like to open an vault," she said professionally. 

The goblin eyed Renata and nodded.

"Does this Miss Lily Evans have any other names?"

"Oh yes," Mrs Evans spoke up timidly. "Her name is Lily Marie Evans."

The goblin put his head down and began scribbling something with a quill. He then looked up and handed a silver key to Lily. How he knew she was the Miss Lily Marie Evans, she didn't know.

"You must have this key to open your vault, Miss Evans. Lose it, your riches will be lost forever. Your vault number is 799." The goblin turned his gaze to Renata. "Is there anything else you wish to do?"

"Yes. I would like to enter Vault 594. And could we please exchange some Muggle money?"

Ten minutes later, Lily had a bag full of gold, silver and bronze coins and another goblin was leading them through a tunnel. At the end of the tunnel, there was a train with several carriages lined up after.

Renata, Mrs Evans, Lily and Tamara all climbed in a carriage each and waited for the ride to come. It was as fast as lightening. Lily's hair flew like a banner behind her, clouding her mother's view. She gripped the sides of the cart so tightly, her knuckles went white as snow. The cold, underground air whipped past Lily as the train plunged round corners, past stalactites and stalagmites and sped up and down hills. 

"I think I feel ill again," Mrs Evans said faintly as they stepped from the cart after the ride

Mrs Evans lent up against a wall and stood there clutching her chest and breathing deeply. Renata looked upon her with pity.

"Not to worry," she assured merrily. "I've got some capsules in my bag that'll fix you up pronto."

Renata dug through her little brown leather handbag. Lily watched in great interest as Renata's arm went much deeper into the bag than it normally would have done. When she withdrew her hand, she was holding a purple box with the words '_Gramma Gemma's Cure For Tum-Tum Twirlies!' _flashing different colours.

Mrs Evans hesitantly took a neon pink capsule and swallowed it, looking greener than ever. But all of a sudden, her skin returned to its normal peachy colour and her expression changed from sickness to surprise.

"I feel wonderful!" Mrs Evans declared, delighted with results.

"Yes. The capsules are very fast at clearing up sickness," Renata agreed.

"Your vault, Mrs Scott," the goblin said silkily, stepping aside a great gape in the stone wall.

"Thank you. I'll just be a minute," Renata said.

Inside the vault there were towers and columns of gold, silver and bronze coins. Renata was taking out handfuls and putting them in a denim bag of hers. 

"All done," she said at last.

The goblin closed her vault and handed her back a tiny key. The ride back was just as speedy as the first. And soon enough they were standing out in the baking sun looking admiringly at Diagon Alley.

"What first?" Lily asked, studying everything she possibly could as they walked along the cobblestone road. 

"Books I think," Renata brought forward, pointing to a shop in the distance.

They advanced towards it, worming their way through the busy crowd. _Flourish and Blotts _was the store's name. They entered to find aisles and aisles laden with all sorts of books. Lily gazed in awe as she spotted a young lady flick through a book about love spells. 

"This is so cool," Tamara squeaked, gripping Lily's arm and dragging her away.

"Do you reckon we could manage these spells anytime soon?" Lily said, indicating the book she was reading.

"_1000 Junior Curses_," Tamara read. "Probably not. Maybe in a year or so though."

After about five minutes of browsing, Lily and Tamara got bored and went to find their mothers. They found them reading off parchment and piling books into little wicker baskets.

"Mother, we're going to go get our robes then to Fortescue's," Tamara proposed.

"Okay. Here's some money," Renata offered, handing her daughter a small leather pouch. "We'll meet you at Fortescue's. So don't wander far."

Lily followed Tamara out of the bookshop and out into the hectic street. People were bustling in all directions carrying bags, holding children's hands and entering and exiting stores and shops. 

"What's Fortescue's?" Lily said, trying to keep up with Tamara's fast strides. 

"This really cool ice-cream place. But we've got to go get our robes first though. Hopefully that won't take long." Tamara shot a cheeky grin at Lily. "I'm craving a chocolate and mango swirl with pineapple pieces! Yum!"

Lily wrinkled up her nose in disgust. 

"We're here! And look! It's empty!" Tamara said breathlessly, skipping energetically into _Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions._

Once inside with the glass dor shut, the sounds from the street were totally diminished. Lily rightfully suspected that magic was involved. 

"Good morning, children."

A kindly looking woman appeared in front of the two girls. 

"Hogwarts robes?" she said, conjuring a tape measure out of this air.

"Uh huh," Tamara piped. 

"Well, just stand up here and it'll be done in no time at all!" 

Tamara and Lily each stood on a stool each. A piece of soft black velvet was draped over Lily and the fitting began.

"Where would we sleep at Hogwarts?" Lily said, itching her nose.

"There's four houses," Tamara said knowledgably, looking extremely proud. "Gryffindor, Slytherin, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw."

"Okay. So which house would we sleep in?" 

Lily shifted slightly, trying to ignore the material tickling her leg.

"Um… We get Sorted into a house. I don't know how. Oh, and, Lily? You don't want to get Sorted into Slytherin. Nathaniel says they're a bunch of evil gits. Hufflepuffs are supposed to be softies and Ravenclaw are the smart people. Gryffindor are the brave people. It sounds like the best."

"All done," the woman said, handing them each a package. "That'll be two Galleons each."

"Tamara?" Lily whispered, elbowing the girl.

"What?" Tamara said, looking up from her pouch.

"What are Galleons?" 

Tamara's eyes widened in understanding.

"I totally forgot you didn't know!" she exclaimed.

"Tamara!" Lily said, becoming impatient. "Just tell me. That lady is staring at me!"

"Sorry. The gold coins are Galleons. The silver are Sickles and the bronze are Knuts."

"Thanks."

Fifteen minutes later, Tamara and Lily were standing at the counter of Florean Fortescue's Ice-Cream Parlour, deciding what to get. Well, Tamara had already chosen a chocolate and mango swirl with pineapple pieces, leaving Lily to choose what she wanted. 

"Um… How about a blueberry and peppermint sundae?" Lily said nervously, fiddling with her fingers.

:"Sorry, Miss. Sundaes are only available on Sunday. May I suggest a blueberry and peppermint Thursday?" said the young man behind the counter.

"Alright," Lily agreed, wondering what the difference was going to be.

It turned out that there was no difference at all between a blueberry and peppermint sundae and a blueberry and peppermint Thursday. Except perhaps that they had a different name for each day of the week. Tamara and Lily sat under the shade of a lime green umbrella, slurping their icy ice-creams. 

"This is heaven," Tamara sighed, swallowing a pineapple piece coated in chocolate ice-cream and mango sauce.

"Uh huh. This is the best ice-cream ever," Lily complimented.

There was silence for a few minutes, but was broken by their mothers'.

"I see that you have stayed put," Renata stated. "I hope that you've just about finished. We've got to go get your wands."

Tamara and Lily bolted up, their ice-creams forgotten.

"We're finished," Lily said hurriedly, wiping away spilt ice-cream with a pale blue napkin.

Mrs Evans laughed. 

"Well, come along then."

The wand shop wasn't as impressive as Lily thought it would be. The inside was dusty and small. There were towers of boxes, no doubt containing wands. 

"Mrs Scott!" a misty voice began.

Lily flinched. Where was the speaker? 

A frail form came out of the shadows and gazed upon the customers. He had silver eyes and was very short and old.

"Mr Ollivander!" Renata greeted. "How nice to see you again. It's been two years?"

"Four actually," Mr Ollivander corrected absently, studying Lily with great intensity.

"We're after two wands," Renata said, getting down to business. "Lily and Tamara are starting Hogwarts in September."

"Delightful," Mr Ollivander answered vaguely, ducking down behind some boxes and returning with two tape measures. "If Miss Scott and Miss Evans please stand still. I'll be needing some measurements."

Lily wanted to ask how he knew her name, but kept her mouth shut and stood still. The two tape measures leapt from Mr Ollivander's hand and began flying around, measuring the two girls as the man disappeared behind some more boxes. 

Lily gawked, cross-eyed at the tape measure that was calculating the length of her nose.

"That'll be enough," Mr Ollivander ordered, appearing once again clutching two thin boxes.

The tape measures instantly dropped to the floor, lifeless. 

"Down to business. Ebony and phoenix feather, thirteen inches, for you Miss Scott. Very sturdy indeed," Mr Ollivander said, handing a wand to Tamara. "Miss Evans, try this. Maple with a unicorn hair. Eleven and a quarter inches. Bit thicker than usual, but extremely well against the Dark Arts."

Lily held the wand in her sweaty hands, just to have it snatched away and replaced by another. The same happened to Tamara.

"Yew and a dragon heartstring. Ten and a half inches. Swishy and flexible," Mr Ollivander said placing a wand in Tamara's hand. "Oak with phoenix feather. Nine inches."

Lily barely held the wand for one second when once again it was taken away. This happened over and over again for about five minutes.

"Miss Scott, Beechwood with dragon heartstring. Fourteen inches and very good with harmless curses. Miss Evans, Willow with unicorn hair. Ten and a quarter inches. Swishy and excellent for charm work."

Lily felt a tingling warmth that spread from her fingers all the way through her arm. She waved it through the dusty air, spraying red and green sparks.

"Wow!" Lily mumbled, staring at the sparks as the fell to the floor and vanished.

"Fabulous! I'll just place that in a box for you and we'll continue with Miss Scott, who seems to be extremely fussy!" Mr Ollivander said happily, taking the wand from Lily and carefully placing it in a blue box and tying it up with string.

Ten minutes later, they left the shop, grinning away. Tamara had gotten a twelve-inch wand made of kingwood containing a dragon heartstring.

The rest of the day was spent getting other school supplies. They went to the Leaky Cauldron for lunch after the shopping trip. With full bellies, they had another speedy trip in the car back to Surrey. Renata dropped off Mrs Evans and Lily, then continued down the street to her own house.

"We're home!" Lily announced marching into the house, carrying her wand and robes. 

Her mother had everything else in her new cauldron.

Mr Evans exited the kitchen and beamed at his wife and youngest daughter. 

"How'd it go?"

"Wonderful," Mrs Evans replied breathlessly. "But I have to admit, I'm _exhausted!_ A nap might be good to me."

Mrs Evans carried some of Lily's stuff up to her room and went to collapse on the couch. Lily pulled out her brand new wand and went down the hall to show it off at Petunia. Lily knocked loudly on her sister's door. It was swung open and her snarling sister stood in the doorway.

"What do you want?" Petunia commanded, folding her arms and scowling.

"I've got a wand!" Lily squealed blissfully, swishing it around so Petunia could see.

Petunia's scowl turned into a look of horror.

"Go away you freak!"

The door was slammed in Lily's face. She frowned and went to read her new books.

**_A/N:_** Whoa! The first chapter! Okay, I've got some disappointing news. I probably won't be updating this often. Well, I'll try, but I've got another story I'm trying to complete aswell. And school. Damn school and homework! It all sucks! So, I hope you enjoyed it.


	2. A Train, the Sorting and a Delicious Fea...

****

Sweet Lily

__

Chapter Two: A Train, the Sorting and a Delicious Feast

Lily was up at the crack of dawn on September the first. The first rays of the sun were only just spilling over the horizon, giving the view a peaceful air about it. But Lily didn't see the beautiful sunrise. She was too busy darting round her room collecting everything she was going to take to Hogwarts. 

"Would you quit stomping around so I can get some sleep!" 

Lily looked up suddenly from her sock drawer. Petunia was standing snootily in the doorway dressed in the most horrendous, permanent mental scarring nightdress. It was a pale pink, short and see through. 

"Are you naked enough?" Lily couldn't help asking, grimacing.

Petunia glowered threateningly.

"This nightdress, _sister,"_ Petunia spat. "Is a product of the most famous and spectacular designer. It cost seventy-two pounds and is worth over a hundred!"

"Well, it cost an awful lot for something that's too small," Lily said daringly.

"It is _not_ too small!" Petunia nearly yelled. "It's perfect! Now keep the noise down or I'll tell mum that you deliberately woke me up."

With a final glare, Petunia stomped out, leaving the door wide open. Lily irritably stood up and shut the door quietly, but was tempted to slam it.

~~~~~~~~~~

"Lily, go fetch your sister. We're already two minutes late!" Mr Evans said breathlessly, rushing out the front door, heaving Lily's silver padlocked trunk.

Lily obliged, racing up the stairs to pound on Petunia's door.

"It's time to go!" she yelled at the entrance to Petunia's domain, waiting with crossed arms for her sister to trudge out.

"You know I don't want to go!" Petunia hissed as they descended down the stairs together.

"I know, Petunia _darling_," Lily teased, earning a death glare from her sibling.

"Hurry along, girls," Mrs Evans urged, sticking her head out the front car window. "Can't be late!"

The trip lasted about an hour, but to Lily, it was like an eternity. She fiddled with her hands and counted the cars they drove past, but still nervous excitement took over her.

Finally, her father parked the car at Kings Cross. Lily rushed out, slamming the car door with a bang. Petunia reluctantly exited the mobile and stood glued to her mother with crossed arms and an unreadable expression. 

"What platform is it, Lily?" Mr Evans asked, hauling his daughter's heavy trunk into the station.

"Platform Nine and Three Quarters," Lily piped instantly, looking around for either the platform or Tamara. Neither was in sight.

"Honey, there is _no_ Platform Nine and Three Quarters," Mrs Evans said gently. 

Petunia's face turned into one of triumph. 

"I guess we'll just have to go home," she said silkily.

"We'll just wait for Tamara or someone that'll know where it is," Lily suggested happily, seating herself on a steel bench against a brick wall.

Her parents sat down beside Lily, but Petunia stayed standing, glaring furiously at a small boy that looked only about four years old. The boy, noticing Petunia's glower, tugged his mothers skirt and looked tearfully up at her. The mother then dragged the little boy away, giving Petunia a disgruntled look.

"Hey, Lily!"

Lily looked to her right and jumped up.

"Tamara! I thought you'd never come! We don't know where the platform is!"

Tamara laughed and placed a curly lock of dark hair behind her ear. 

"Don't worry. Mother is coming with my trunk and Nathaniel."

Renata and Nathaniel Scott then appeared behind Tamara, pushing a wooden trunk with golden padlocks.

"What's with the padlocks?" Lily inquired curiously.

"Decoration," Tamara replied simply, winking for some reason.

"Right. Anyway, where's the platform?" Lily said, eyeing her family. (Mrs Evans was conversing with Renata, Petunia stood stiffly beside her mother and Mr Evans was just minding the trunk.)

"Oh, yeah. Well, all you have to do is walk into the wall between platforms nine and ten. Simple really," Tamara explained, shrugging her shoulders. "I'll just tell Mother we're going so she can follow afterwards. Mother?"

Renata turned to face her daughter.

"Mother, we're going to go onto the platform now. Bye," Tamara informed, smiling.

"Okay then. I'll be there soon," Renata said, turning back to Mrs Evans and Petunia.

"We have to walk _into_ the wall?" Lily questioned timidly, noting that the wall looked extremely solid.

"Yep!" Tamara agreed. 

Tamara grasped Lily's arm incase Lily freaked out before they hit the wall and began pacing forward.

"Are you sure about this?" Lily asked anxiously as her pace quickened.

"Yeah!" Tamara twittered eagerly as they dodged an elderly woman with a crooked walking stick. "I've done it heaps of times when we took Nathaniel to school!"

Lily prepared herself for a splitting headache as the wall neared. The crash would come any second now… But it didn't. 

Lily stared around in wonderment and shock. Through the wall was a completely different world, and a crazy one at that. Adults and children were bustling around lugging trunks and wickerwork baskets, yelling to each other deafeningly. Cats were darting around people's ankles and meowing up a storm, owls were hotting indignantly to each other and other animals were causing a loud row. Behind them all was a scarlet train billowing out smoke.

"Marvellous, isn't it?" Tamara said, watching Lily gape in awe.

Lily nodded dazedly. But the look didn't last long. Lily and Tamara were both knocked forward by a heavy force, landing on the ground with a painful thud. 

"Ouch," Lily said bluntly, looking at Tamara. 

Both of them had been squished by _something._ Tamara rolled her eyes and wriggled slightly.

"_James Potter!_ Get off me at once!" she hollered, trying to squirm away from under the person on top of her.

There was a sniggering from above Lily. 

"Whatever you say, Your _Majesty_."

The weight on top of Lily was lifted and she could breathe deeply once again. She helped herself up, dusted her clothes and looked to see what had landed on top of her and Tamara.

"Lily," Tamara said rolling her eyes. "This is James, that's Sirius."

Tamara gestured to a boy beside her (James) and another closer to Lily (Sirius). The two boys both had black hair, but each with a completely different texture. James' was messy, sticking up in every direction. Lily had to hold back a giggle. He looked absurd. Sirius, on the other hand, had much more tameable hair. It grew to just below the ear and was pretty straight, save for a slight mischievous wave. James had creamy brown eyes and Sirius had a cool blue-grey. 

"Er… Hi," Lily mumbled, her jittering nerves taking over. "I'm Lily."

"Sirius Black at your service, _My Lady_," Sirius smirked, bowing deeply and taking Lily's hand.

Lily didn't know what to do or say.

"Um… Okay…"

Tamara and James snorted.

"Sirius, you're scaring her!" James exclaimed, chortling.

"Sirius, you're scaring her!" Sirius mimicked in a high-pitched voice, dropping Lily's hand. "Come on, James. We better scoot. They'll be coming through soon."

James and Sirius waved their goodbyes and disappeared into the hustling crowd. 

"Let's go find a compartment," Tamara said, heading towards the glimmering train. 

Lily followed, admiring every little detail of the people surrounding her. Most of them were wearing robes of every sort and colour. It was indeed fascinating. She couldn't wait til they were at Hogwarts. 

"Oh, look! This one's only got one person in it!" Tamara said, entering the compartment. 

The girl who sat alone in the compartment looked up from her book. She had glorious, silky blonde hair, blanketing her back. Her eyes were a deep, penetrating blue framed with lush black lashes. Her skin was a pallid white with not a freckle to spot. 

"Hey, you mind if we intrude?" Tamara asked the girl, standing in the doorway. 

The girl shook her head and Lily and Tamara entered.

"I'm Tamara and this is Lily."

"I'm Ella," the girl said timidly, smiling. 

"Hi," Lily said, sitting down next to Ella as Tamara stuck her head out the window.

"What's she doing?" Ella asked quietly, watching Tamara inquisitively. 

"Have no id-"

"MOTHER! WE'RE OVER HERE!"

Lily smacked her ears. Tamara's voice was thunderous when she wanted it to be. 

"I'll be back in a sec," Tamara said breathlessly. "Our parents are deaf."

"Okay…" Ella said, perplexed.

"She's just a bit crazy," Lily whispered, grinning.

Tamara had returned with a bang - literally. She had tripped before entering the compartment, falling on Mr Evans. Mr Evans, who was hauling Lily's trunk, fell forward also, dropping the trunk with a powerful thud. Lily and Ella burst into fits of giggles as they stared at the tangle they were in. Mr Evans was lying on his stomach on the trunk, Tamara was awkwardly sitting on Mr Evans and Renata and Mrs Evans stood behind with shocked looks on their faces.

"Ugh," Tamara moaned, getting up. "Sorry, Mr Evans. I tripped."

"Quite alright," Mr Evans groaned with a strained look, rubbing his stomach.

Mrs Evans strolled past her husband, shaking her head. She smiled at Ella and turned to her youngest daughter. 

"The train's leaving in a few minutes. Remember to study hard and _have fun._ You can always come home if you don't like it."

Lily nodded.

"I'll be going now. Don't forget to write!" Mrs Evans said, planting a kiss on Lily's forehead.

Lily's cheeks flushed. 

"Bye, Mum. I promise to do all those things," Lily said as her mother left with Renata and her father. 

Tamara and Lily kneeled on the cushioned seats and stuck their heads out the window as the train began chugging along.

"Bye, Mum! Bye, Dad! See you later!" Lily screamed, waving frantically as her parents got smaller and smaller as the train moved on.

Soon they were both just a spec on the horizon. Lily and Tamara pulled their heads in and sat down next to Ella.

"So, where're your parents?" Tamara asked, looking politely curious.

"Dead," Ella replied simply.

"Sorry," Lily and Tamara said in unison.

"Oh, it's okay," Ella said, shrugging. "My father died before I was even born and my mother died when I was five. I live with my Grandmother. She's ancient and couldn't come."

"Must really bite living with your grandmother," Lily said, frowning. "Mine's really strict."

"Nah… She's okay. She let's me go out a lot."

Around lunchtime, there was a knock at the door. Lily got up and slid the door open. A portly young witch stood before her, gripping a trolley piled with mysterious sweets and savouries. The woman smiled and gestured to the food.

"Is anybody wanting anything from the trolley?" she questioned benevolently.

Tamara and Ella instantly appeared behind Lily, moneybags in hand. 

"Um… I'll have five Liquorice Wands (_de_licious), a box of Bertie Botts Every Flavour Beans…"

Ten minutes later, Lily, Ella and Tamara sat gossiping away while munching on various yummy delights. 

"What house do you want to be in, Ella?" Tamara said, chewing a particularly tough Bertie Botts bean. "This steak flavour-" (She munched a little heavier) "-is really realistic."

"Well, I don't really care," Ella answered, swallowing a mouthful of Cauldron Cake to speak. "Just as long I don't get into Slytherin, I'm happy."

"I agree," Lily said, licking a Chocolate Frog. "What I've heard about that house, (which is not much), is not all that good."

"Nathaneil's in Gryffindor," Tamara said absently. "I wouldn't mind that house either."

Suddenly, the door burst open and three breathless people collapsed onto the floor. Slamming the door shut. Tamara, Ella and Lily bolted up to see what was all the fuss. Two girls and a boy were squirming on the ground, fighting. Well, more like play fighting. They were laughing hysterically as they muffed up each other's hair.

"What in the world…" Lily murmured, raising her eyebrows.

"Okay, break it up, break it up!" Tamara yelled, pulling a girl with strawberry blonde hair away from the tangle. 

Each person stood up and straightened themselves up. 

"Er… Sorry for intruding. The older kids kicked us out. I'm Cassidy."

A girl with thick, light brown hair stuck out her hand.

"I'm Lily," Lily said, shaking Nicole's hand. "This is Tamara and Ella."

"These speechless idiots are Blake-" (Nicole nodded to a boy with spiky blonde hair) "-and Aimee." (She nodded to the girl with strawberry blonde hair.)

"Well, we'll just be moving on…" Aimee said pointedly, tugging on Blake and Cassidy's sleeves.

The three left, leaving Ella, Lily and Tamara to stare at the closed door.

"They were weird," Tamara stated, returning to the food.

"Tell me about it," Lily agreed, picking up her half eaten Chocolate Frog.

"Well, they seemed nice enough to me," Ella commented. "Just a little… Energetic?"

They laughed.

__

A few hours later…

"We will be arriving at Hogwarts in five minutes. Please change into your robes and leave luggage behind when you exit the train. They will be taken up to the castle separately."

Lily jiggled her hands nervously.

"We're nearly there!"

Tamara, who had been digging through her atrociously untidy trunk, looked up. 

"Uh huh. And you'd better get your robes on like the announcement said. Otherwise you'll be the little oddball of all the first years," she said, chuckling.

Lily widened her eyes.

"Oh yeah…"

Lily began searching through her trunk and ended up dressed in her robes before Tamara. 

"I can't find my robes!" Tamara exclaimed in despair, throwing her arms up. 

The compartment was littered in her things after she'd thrown them out of her trunk, looking for a single robe to wear. Lily and Ella snickered, both dressed. 

"Don't know how you could miss them, Tamara," Ella laughed, picking up a black robe that was draped over a chair. 

"Oops," Tamara muttered, taking the robe from Ella. "Thanks."

Just as Tamara slipped the black robe over her head, the train slowed and finally came to a halting stop. The doors slid open and a stampede of teenagers began. Ella, Lily and Tamara joined the hustle and bustle, only to loose each other in the process.

The sky was a dull purple when Lily managed to escape the train. There was a biting chill in the air that nipped her skin. She was also lost. 

"Tamara? Ella?" Lily began calling, pushing her way through the crowd of taller people.

"Firs' years! Firs' years over here!" 

Lily followed the booming voice, hoping it would lead her to her friends. 

The voice belonged to a giant of a man. He was about twice as tall as a normal man was and five times as thick. He had beetle black eyes that scanned the crowd for lost first years and pulling them to safety. The bottom half of the man's face was buried deep within a knotted mass of black hair, and so was his head. 

"'Ello there," the man said in a friendly manner, patting Lily on the head.

"Um… Hello," she answered nervously, chancing a smile.

"Lily! Have you seen Tamara?" Ella said.

For the first time, Lily noticed a pack of restless first years, hardly speaking. Ella was apart of them, but Tamara was not.

"Ah, don' worry," the giant man consoled, his hidden lips curling into a smile. "We'll find 'er in the end."

The man was right. After the crowd of older students died down, Tamara was spotted crouched on the muddy ground, curled up in a ball. She tentatively looked up and saw the clan of first years.

"What on earth are you doing down there?" Lily laughed, helping her friend to her feet.

"Everyone was pushing me," Tamara said sulkily, gazing at her robes in scorn. They were splattered with sticky mud.

"Ye all here now?" the man said in a deep voice. 

He began counting heads.

"Ye are. Now, come along. We're already late."

The man led them down a rundown trail that had rocks embedded in the grimy mud. This path led to a splendid, glittering black lake with an awe-inspiring fortress towering above them all. Turrets and towers stood tall, coming off the main building at the oddest angles. The windows glowed yellow and reflected off the still lake.

Lily gawked with saucer-sized eyes at the amazing sight. Ella and Tamara were beside her, doing the exact same.

"Come along," the man ushered. "Into the boats."

Lily, Ella and Tamara stumbled towards shore, slipping and tumbling over the slimy stones. The water was icy cold, but once ankle-deep, they could climb into the boats. Lily peered in the dark, murky water, shivering from the frosty air.

"This is better than I ever imagined," Tamara admitted, rubbing her hands together.

"Everyone in?" the man asked, looking around. He had a boat all to himself. "FORWARD!"

The boats began sailing across the lake and towards the cliff the castle stood upon, barely rippling the silk-like surface of the black water. Everyone ducked their heads as the boats went through a dense tunnel in the cliff face, not wanting to be decapitated. After the quick ride was over, the boats hit the opposite shore of more slippery pebbles, allowing the new students to climb out.

The giant of a man led the first years up a small staircase and mightily knocked on the door that stood before them. The door was instantaneously thrown open. A slender, tall (but not as tall as the man) woman stood in the doorway, examining the students in front of her. She had white skin, thin lips and her black hair was pulled up on top of her head into a perfect bun without a hair out of place. 

"Thank you, Hagrid," she said stiffly, her piercing eyes laying on the giant man. "You may go."

The man called Hagrid bowed slightly and walked along the lake's shore, then disappeared from view. The stern-looking woman shepherded the first years through the door and into a small room made of stone with blazing candles positioned in brackets on the walls. 

"I am Professor McGonagall, Deputy Head Mistress and Head of Gryffindor House," the lady said, launching into a rehearsed speech about the four Houses, House points and the Sorting. "Now line up and tidy yourselves up!"

Lily lined up behind Ella and Tamara with a pretty girl with blonde hair and a look that suggested that something stunk horribly behind her. Professor McGonagall began leading all the first years through a side door and into the largest room Lily had ever seen. It was enormous. Then through another door and into the room where the whole school was waiting. 

Lily recoiled a little when she noticed that the whole Hogwarts population was staring at the first years. Lily watched as a stool was placed before the school and a ragged, old hat was sat upon it. Wondering what on earth it could mean, Lily dazed up at the ceiling. 

It was like looking directly at the sky. There were swirling clouds and flashes of lightening flashing across the ceiling. It was most certainly magical.

Lily's eyes were jerked away when a song began to ring through the hall. She looked around for the singer, but everyone's eyes were on the hat. And it was the hat that was singing the song! Lily stared with wonderment as the hat sang from a rip in the brim.

(**A/N:** I am dearly sorry if you were expecting to see a proper Sorting Hat song here. But I cannot write poetry to save my life. Adios!)

Lily was still in a trance of awe when Professor McGonagall produced a long, yellowing scroll and began reading names off it.

"Allard, Regan!" McGonagall announced to the silent hall.

A small boy with mouse coloured hair stepped forward, sat on the stool and placed the hat on his head. He sat there for nearly a minute before the hat shouted his destined house.

"RAVENCLAW!"

Regan Allard took the hat off and returned it to it's place on the stool and made his way to the loudest table of them all. 

"Avery, Luther!" McGonagall said, narrowing her eyes as a sour looking boy placed the hat on his head.

"SLYTHERIN!"

The Sorting continued, and Lily's nerves grew as her name drew nearer.

"Beattie, Samson!" 

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

"Black, Sirius!"

The boy that had landed on Lily earlier skipped forward, supposedly not as anxious as Lily felt. But she did spot a look of fright on Sirius' face before the Hat slipped over his eyes.

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Sirius threw off the hat and whooped loudly, leaving the poor Sorting Hat tilted on the ground as he dance over to the Gryffindor table. The Sorting Hat coughed loudly. McGonagall shook her head in disapproval and returned the Hat to it's rightful place before yelling out the name of the next first year.

"Bristow, Jennifer!"

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

Lily was getting impatient. The Sorting was going awfully slow!

"Bunker, Brayden!"

"RAVENCLAW!"

"Burton, Kenny!"

"SLYTHERIN!"

"Cadwallader, Constance!"

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

"Chambers, Ella!"

Lily grinned and gave Ella thumbs up, wishing her good luck. Ella ambled forward, her hands visibly shaking. She sat down on the stool and placed the Hat on her head. It was one of the longest Sorts. After nearly five minutes, the Hat announced it's decision.

"RAVENCLAW!"

Ella unsteadily placed the Hat back on the stool with wide eyes and sat next to someone at the Ravenclaw table with a small smile. The Sorting continued.

"Collett, Vance!"

"GRYFFINDOR!"

"Craddock, Joshua!"

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

Lily was just thinking that there seemed to be an abnormal amount of people that had surnames starting with letters in the first half of the alphabet when the next name was called out.

"Cummings, Narcissa!"

The girl behind Lily walked forward and put on the hat.

"SLYTHERIN!"

"Dalton, Norman!"

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

"Evans, Lily!"

Lily widened her brilliant green eyes. She had temporarily forgotten that she too had to be Sorted. Timidly, she staggered over to the Hat, vaguely aware that about four hundred people were staring at her. Carefully, she placed the Hat on her head, afraid it would fall apart in her hands. Blackness came after it slipped over her wide eyes. 

__

My, my, there is_ a lot in here, isn't there? _Lily concentrated on listening to the voice in her ear. _Lots of knowledge here, I see. You would do outstandingly well in Ravenclaw, you know? And there's bravery, boldness and a fiery temper hidden behind your shy appearance. And you're extremely loyal to the one's that get close to you. A very odd combination of assortments. So where shall I put you? Hmm… I'm thinking-_

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Lily sighed in relief. She took the hat off and walked over to the Gryffindor table with legs of jelly.

"Hey, Lily!" Sirius greeted her brightly, flashing a roguish smile and offering her a seat.

"Hey," Lily said, smiling.

"Fenton, Osmond!" McGonagall declared, continuing with the Sorting.

Lily watched a tall boy with black hair put on the Hat.

"SLYTHERIN!"

"Bah! Stinky little snake," Sirius muttered, shaking his head darkly.

"Finch, Artemis!"

"SLYTHERIN!"

"Floyd, Johanna!"

"SLYTHERIN!"

"Geddes, Cinnamon!"

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Cinnamon Geddes seated herself next to Lily, grinning. She had waist-length caramel coloured hair, dark brown eyes and skin the same colour as her hair that was sprinkled with freckles. 

"I _never_ wanna do that again!" she piped, stilling showing off her pearly white teeth.

Lily laughed and nodded her head as the next person was called.

"Hawkins, Basil!"

"GRYFFINDOR!"

"Kingston, Shelby!"

"RAVENCLAW!"

"Levy, Malory!"

"RAVENCLAW!"

"Lupin, Remus!"

Sirius seemed to know the pale boy with wispy brown hair that had put on the hat. 

"Go, Remus!" he howled, shaking his fist and hooting.

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Remus Lupin stumbled over to the Gryffindor table with a weak smile. He sat opposite to Sirius, who was patting Remus on the head rather powerfully. 

"Matheson, Blythe!"

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

"Maynard, Savannah!"

"SLYTHERIN!"

"McAllistor, Carmel!"

"RAVENCLAW!"

"McCaffrey, Aimee!"

Aimee with her strawberry blonde bob, placed the Hat on her head, trembling.

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

Aimee smiled uncertainly and made her way to the Hufflepuff table.

"McCaffrey, Blake!"

Lily widened her eyes in surprise. They were twins?

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

"McCaffrey, Cassidy!"

If possible, Lily's eyes widened to the size of beach balls. _Triplets?_

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Cassidy sat across from Lily, looking a little surprised. Lily was about to ask how she was doing, but McGonagall had already shouted out the next name.

"Pettigrew, Peter!"

A short and particularly chubby boy staggered forward, tripping over his own feet several times. He wore the Hat for over five minutes before his house was decided.

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Lily laughed as Sirius jumped up to clap the shorter boy forcefully on the back. 

"Potter, James!"

The boy with the disastrous hair stepped forward and let the Hat fall over his eyes. Lily could see Sirius in the corner of her eye, pleading under his breath for James to be in Gryffindor. 

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Sirius' hollers were easily the loudest as he forced everyone to move down one to let James sit next to him.

"Pye, Beatriz!"

"SLYTHERIN!"

"Qualters, Albert!"

"RAVENCLAW!"

"Richards, Butterfly!"

Lily was just thinking what an odd name Butterfly was when her house was announced.

"RAVENCLAW!"

"Rosewarne, Kachina!"

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

"Scott, Tamara!"

Lily waited with bated breath as Tamara placed the Hat on her head, glancing nervously at Lily. But it had barely touched her head when the hall rang with the Hat's decision.

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Lily jumped up to applaud and cheer as Tamara ambled to the Gryffindor table. Lily made everyone move down once again so Tamara could sit on her left.

"Sibley, Salvador!"

"SLYTHERIN!"

"Skittler, Natasha!"

"RAVENCLAW!"

"Snape, Severus!"

Lily spotted James and Sirius scowling as an extremely pallid boy with greasy black hair put on the Hat. He did look like a nasty fellow.

"SLYTHERIN!"

"Telfar, Ian!"

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

"Treadaway, Tyler!"

"RAVENCLAW!"

"Tresilian, Idalee!"

"GRYFFINDOR!"

"Vachin, Kyle!"

"RAVENCLAW!"

"Walton, Pepper!"

"GRYFFINDOR!"

There were now only two people left to be Sorted. Lily was thankful for that. She ravenous! The sweets on the train seemed like days ago!

"Webster, Phillip!"

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

"Zing, Dahlia!"

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

Lily turned toward the staff table. An ancient looking man stood up, surveying the students. He had a very lengthy silver beard that could be tucked into his belt. He was wearing dazzling blue robes with vibrant yellow stars that shot across the blue velvet. A pair of half-moon spectacles were perched on his crooked nose, covering two glittering blue eyes. 

"What is there to say?" he said in a clear voice with a smile playing on his lips. "Eat up!"

Magically, food instantly appeared on the golden dishes before Lily. Lily had to blink twice to realise what had happened. But the delicious smells tempted her and she began piling her own plate with the food. 

"Hey, James," Sirius said, nudging James in the ribs.

"Ow! What?" James answered, rubbing his ribs with one hand and holding a chicken leg with the other.

"I bet I could get more detentions than you," Sirius challenged with a maniac grin.

Lily snorted into her mashed potatoes, spluttering the white mush all over the platter of grilled steak. 

"Hey, watch it!" an older kid said, who had their hand near the steak.

"Er… Sorry," Lily apologised, her cheeks pink as she offered the boy a napkin.

"Lily, Lily," Tamara sighed, giggling. "_What_ am I going to do with you?"

"Hey, you're supposed to be my friend!" Lily chuckled, swiping Tamara with a pumpkin juice soaked napkin.

"I am!" Tamara squealed, chucking the soggy napkin down the table. "Look innocent!" she hissed.

Lily put her head down and tried not to grin as she ate her gravy-drowned beef. 

"It's a pity that Ella was Sorted into Ravenclaw," Lily said once the coast was clear.

"Yeah… But she looks pretty happy," Tamara replied, looking over at the Ravenclaw table.

Ella was giggling at something Butterfly Richards had said. Her eyes fell on Lily and Tamara and they each gave the other a wave and a smile.

"She's your friend?"

Lily and Tamara swung round. Pepper Walton was looking at them expectantly, her dead straight black hair beginning to fall out of its ponytail.

"Yeah. Met her on the train," Lily answered. 

Pepper nodded as she spooned the last of her corn into her mouth.

"You got magic parents?" Tamara said, pushing her plate away so she could prop her elbows on the table.

"Both my parents are Muggle-Born. What about you two?" Pepper said, also pushing away her plate.

"I've got Muggle parents," Lily said.

"Both my parents are pure," Tamara said, throwing her chest out. "I would _hate_ to live as a Muggle!"

"That reminds me…" Lily said distantly. "I promised Mum I would write. I'll do it after tea. Er… What owl do I use?"

"You could use one of the school one's," Pepper suggested. "But you can use Twinkles. She's my owl."

"Thanks!"

Seconds later, the golden dishes were emptied and replaced with chocolate eclairs, jam doughnuts, treacle pudding and other sweet-tasting delights. It was a full on race to snatch away what you wanted as everyone went for everything at once. 

"This is the _best_," Tamara praised loudly, except that the words she said didn't come quite right as her mouth was stuffed full of chocolate topped custard tart. 

"I could easily get used to this," Pepper agreed, licking some toffy off her chin.

Lily nodded eagerly, swallowing a mouthful of treacle pudding.

After everyone was stuffed full of food, the plates were cleared away and the old man Tamara had said was Professor Dumbledore stood up.

"Now that you're tastebuds have been satisfied and your stomachs filled, I have some brief announcements to make before you drift into Dreamland," Dumbledore said in a melodious voice as he gazed down at everyone. "Firstly, we have a new Defence Against the Dark Arts professor. Please welcome Professor Fidley-Wigg."

A small wizard stood up behind the staff table. He didn't look overly confident in himself. He didn't have much hair either, and the thin wisps of hair he did have were bright orange. Professor Fidley-Wigg just waved a little and avoided everyone's eyes before sitting back down.

"Now, as all the older students should very well know, the Forbidden Forest is strictly forbidden, as obvious as it seems," Dumbledore continued. "So could you please avoid going there at all costs, or you may, I'm sorry to say, lose your head, literally." Dumbledore looked around his students in a sombre way. "We have recently transferred an old and extremely dangerous tree onto the grounds. I beg you not to get too close to it. It is very protective of itself and will attack even if you mean no harm. I do believe that is all I have to say, so could Prefects please lead the other students to your Common Rooms. Good night and don't let the bed bugs bite!" Dumbledore finished brightly.

"Why'd they put a dangerous tree on the grounds anyway?" Tamara retorted. "It's obvious that some dim-witted person is going to try get near it."

Lily and Pepper nodded in agreement.

"First years! Gryffindor first years!"

Lily, Pepper and Tamara glanced over at a taller Gryffindor with vivid red hair and a golden badge. He was motioning them to follow.

"I am one of the Gryffindor fifth year Prefects," he said, looking quite smug. "I'm Erwin Weasley and this is Flora Viktonstine, the other Gryffindor Prefect."

A girl beside him with red-brown hair waved cheerily. 

"Follow us and _pay attention_," Flora said good-naturedly. "Can't have you getting lost tomorrow, can we?"

Flora and Erwin led the Gryffindor first years through a series of confusing passages, both secret and apparent, trapdoors and up and down staircases of all descriptions. Even though Lily was paying rapt attention, she doubted whether she would find her way down stairs the next day, let alone to classes!

Finally Flora and Erwin stopped at a large portrait of a fat lady. 

"This is the entrance to Gryffindor Tower," Erwin instructed. "The password to enter is Hot Chocolate. Don't forget that or you'll be locked out until someone finds you."

The portrait of the Fat Lady swung open and the first years clambered in.

Inside was a room that was as homely as homely gets. It was a circular room carpeted with a rich, soft red carpet. There were several huge, spongy scarlet armchairs scattered around the room, some right in front of a crackling fire. Two slender staircases led up to elsewhere, one labelled 'Boys' and the other 'Girls'.

"Alright!" Flora said enthusiastically, clapping her hands together. "Girls, follow me, boys, follow Erwin."

Flora led the girls up the staircase labelled 'Girls', explaining how this was where their dormitory was. She opened a door identified as 'First Year Girls' Dormitory'.

"I bags the bed closest to the window!" Tamara shouted, racing over to the end bed. 

There were six four-poster beds with crimson canopies and curtains. Each looked awfully warm and snug, and thinking about it was making Lily's eyes droop. She chose the bed in across from Tamara's, already finding her trunk placed at the end. 

"Hey, Lily," Tamara said. "Shouldn't you change?"

Lily got up and dug through her trunk for her pyjamas. She found them reasonably quickly as she liked to keep things neat, much unlike Tamara who began throwing garments over the dormitory floor. 

"_Where are they?!"_ Tamara cried out, chucking a pink sock over her shoulder and hitting Idalee Tresilian in the process.

"Um… Would you be looking for these?" Idalee said, holding up a pair of purple paisley pyjamas.

Tamara pounced on Idalee, looking thankful.

"Thank you, whoever you are!"

"Idalee."

"Thank you, Idalee!"

"G'night, Tamara," Lily said sleepily, pulling up the covers. "'Night, Cassidy. 'Night, Pepper."

After a chorus of goodnight's, each girl was snoozing peacefully and didn't even stir when a loud bang erupted from the boys' dormitories.

**__**

A/N: Thank you for the reviews I got, I am very grateful. I've been awfully naughty by not getting this up for AGES! I'm very sorry for that. Adios! 


	3. A Day to Remember

****

Disclaimer: Anything you recognise as JK Rowlings, is obviously hers. Anything that you do not, is my creation.

****

Authors Note: Thank you ever so much to **moliosi**, **DreamReal**, **The Spectre of Sanity**, **Vooda Tribal**, **Ayla** and **SweetStar**. Erwin Weasley is Arthur Weasley's little brother. I'm so sorry for stealing your wood Speccie! I didn't mean to! Thank you for reading the story so far! Bye. 

****

J 

Sweet Lily

__

Chapter Three: A Day to Remember

"Lily! Lily! Wake up!"

Lily opened her eyes regretfully. She was dozing happily and was not pleased that she had been disturbed. But one thought about where she actually was woke Lily up completely. 

"What is it?" she said hurriedly, throwing back the covers and rising to her feet.

Tamara looked awfully excited. All the girls were up, but the sunlight hadn't even begun pouring through the window.

"It's our first day!" Pepper squealed, burying through her trunk. "Isn't that exciting!?"

"Yes," Lily said truthfully. "But classes don't start in another two hours!"

"She's been like that since three in the morning," Idalee said drowsily, stifling a yawn. "You were one of the lucky ones. I've been up for hours trying to shut her up."

Lily giggled and shook her head. School had certainly begun on a wild note, not to mention rather sleepily too. 

"Where's Cassidy?" Tamara said, running a brush through her curly hair. 

"In the shower," Pepper answered, draping her black school robes over her shoulder. "Which is where I'm off to!"

Both Pepper and Idalee disappeared into the bathroom where the sounds of water pounding on the tiled ground could be heard. A whole hour later, every single first year Gryffindor girl was showered, dressed and groomed, all looking spectacular for their first day at Hogwarts. 

"Breakfast time!" Tamara shrieked, flipping one of her tidily plaited pigtails over her shoulder. "And boy, I am hungry!"

"Didn't last night's feast fill you up?" Lily exclaimed, swinging her book bag over her shoulder. 

"Oh, it did," Tamara said as they descended down to the Common Room. "But my tummy was emptied during the night."

"Hey, Tamara! What you got on your head!"

Tamara yelped loudly as her beanie was yanked off her head as she exited the portrait hole. She swivelled round to face a gloating Sirius with a teasing smile on his face. He jumped out of the portrait hole, James, Remus and a small boy from the Sorting called Peter.

"I want my hat back!" Tamara pouted, beginning to walk backwards as Sirius advanced, waggling her beanie around in the air so she couldn't reach.

"Nuh-uh-uh," Sirius mocked, prancing around on tiptoes with Tamara's beanie. "Manners, young lady."

"Uh!" Tamara grunted, punching the air. "You can be _so_ annoying!"

"And you've only just learnt that?" James laughed from behind Sirius.

"Hey, Tamara!" Sirius yelled, flashing a charming grin. "Come catch your hat!"

He sprinted down the hall, zigzagging his way. Tamara leaped after Sirius, bounding her way at him. Lily, James, Remus and Peter watched from afar as the two energetic children chased after each other. Sirius dove behind a tall suit of armour and Tamara followed. But she didn't quite get her aim correct. She crashed into the heavy metal suit, tumbling to the ground with Sirius and getting showered with shiny pieces of metal with a deafening smash.

Lily, James and Remus snorted with endless laughter and Peter sniggered slightly. 

"What'd you do that for, you klutz!" Sirius screamed hurling a helmet across the passage. 

Tamara jumped up with some effort, grasping her beanie triumphantly.

"I got it!"

"You guys better get out of here quick," Remus advised, smiling. "The caretaker is not a happy fellow, I hear."

The six first years left the passage, wiping tears of mirth from their eyes. They wandered endlessly, looking for the Great Hall after the incident with the suit of armour, but no avail. 

"Where in the world is the Great Hall!" Sirius cried out in dismay, clutching his chest. "I'm _starved!"_

"You're always starved," James scoffed, earning himself a soft punch in the shoulder. "Hey, look! Follow them!"

Five minutes after trailing after a tall brunette and a shorter boy with blonde hair, they found the Great Hall. 

"_Mm…_ Food!"

"You two are such pigs!" Tamara insulted, watching James and Sirius practically _inhale_ every edible thing within their sight.

"Ank oo," Sirius replied, his mouth so full with syrup-drenched pancakes that his words were all muddled up.

Tamara rolled her eyes as she swallowed a spoonful of porridge.

"Do you two ever plan on growing up?" she asked, sipping some pumpkin juice. 

James and Sirius exchanged glances, then faced Lily and Tamara with straight faces.

"Nope."

"First Year schedules!" Erwin called out, beginning to hand out large pieces of parchment to all the First Years. 

Lily read hers eagerly, neglecting her plate of scrambled eggs.

"We've got Herbology first… Then Charms with the Hufflepuffs," Lily read out. "Then lunch." (Sirius smacked his lips at that.) "After lunch we have Transfiguration then History of Magic. And tonight we have Astronomy!"

"We'd better get going if we don't want to get lost," Pepper said from across the table. "It took you seven long enough to get here. I just asked Flora to show me the way."

"Herbology is outside in the greenhouses," Remus said. "I know that much."

So the Gryffindor First Years set off outside, the cool summer wind blowing onto their faces. 

Finding themselves five minutes early, they seated themselves on the plush grass beside the row of greenhouses. Another ten minutes later, the teacher, Professor Quimberly, arrived.

The professor was only a few inches taller than Lily and rather thin and frail. She was old, no doubt, as it showed. Her hair was light grey and braided back and held together by a plain black elastic band. Her skin sagged like an elephant's, cheeks brushed with pink and lips painted a shocking red. Her deep green robes were on backwards, as was her hat.

"Hello, dears," Professor Quimberly croaked, her voice kind. "I do like a class that is early!"

Lily smiled at the lady. 

"We'll be working outside today by the garden beds just over there," Quimberly said, pointing to a place in between two of the greenhouses.

Lily and Tamara exchanged glances before making their way to the small area. 

Between the two greenhouses was a beautiful little garden. There was a small, greenish pond surrounded by brightly coloured flowers and giant, leafy plants towering over the fishpond. The pond spilled into a narrow, trickling stream that led into another small body of water and so on. It was peaceful place.

Professor Quimberly gestured for the class to seat themselves on a small patch of grass beside a huge purple and blue spotted flower that was actually _breathing_.

"Now, today we will be… Oh, yes! We will be simply feeding and watering the pants in this garden, aswell as tending to the water features and fish."

Lily eyed the breathing plant cautiously, terrified that it would attack after a sharp movement.

"I will put you in pairs and assign you all a plant or task," Quimberly said, adjusting some thick-rimmed glasses and studying a sheet of parchment. "Mr Black and Mr Collett will be together. Miss Evans and Miss Geddes are working together. Mr Hawkins and Mr Lupin. Miss McCaffrey and Mr Pettigrew. Mr Potter and Miss Scott. Miss Tresilian and Miss Walton. Please go over to your partner and I'll assign your task."

Lily went over to Cinnamon and Tamara wandered over to where James was perched upon and damp log next to Sirius and Vance Collett. 

"I _really_ hope we don't have to feed that thing," Lily whispered, pointing to the breathing plant. "It looks lethal."

"Or those over there," Cinnamon said, speaking of five or six fluttering flowers with glittering silver teeth.

"Miss Geddes and Miss Evans?" 

Lily and Cinnamon turned their faces towards Quimberly.

"You will be preparing the fish food. Here's the recipe. Shouldn't be too hard," Professor Quimberly said warmly, handing them a piece of parchment.

Lily skimmed the recipe over Cinnamon's shoulder. It actually was quite simple, except for the two ingredients she didn't know. 

"Aw, we can do this!" Cinnamon exclaimed, tugging at a tuft of grass that was the first ingredient.

"And here's the daffodil," Lily said, gently plucking the bright yellow flower from the garden beside her. 

A mortar and pestle was placed at her feet by the professor. Lily tore off the petals of the flower and dropped them into the mortar, on top of the grass Cinnamon had placed into the stone basin already. 

"I'll just fetch the basil and mint from the herb garden," Cinnamon said, rising to her feet.

Lily nodded as she sprinkled a handful of wheat into the mortar. She scanned the list of ingredients, looking for one she could get. There were only three items left. Two she had no idea what they were, and the last was seaweed. Grimacing, Lily eyed the pond about a foot away. Green moss and slime grew along the rocky sides, swishing softly to the small ripples on the surface. Long tendrils of dark green seaweed dance in the water. Several large gold fish, flecked with coloured scales darted between the plants and rocks, not noticing the redhead watching them closely.

"Don't fall in!"

Lily glanced up from staring absently into the pond. Sirius and Vance Collett were standing on the other side, next to where the stream began, holding a fish net and a large bucket.

"What are you supposed to be doing?" Lily asked incredulously, eyeing their equipment.

"Well, once you get out of the way, we're going to clean the pond," Sirius explained pointedly, waving the fish net around, almost knocking Lily's head off her shoulders.

"Hey! Watch it!"

"Well, what are you doing there anyway?"

"Seaweed," Lily scowled, dipping her finger in the murky water, quickly withdrawing it.

Sirius and Vance sniggered. 

"Well, go on," Sirius said, grinning. "Go get your seaweed."

"Can't you just empty the pond then I can get it?" Lily said, looking up at Sirius with pleading eyes.

"Nope!" 

Lily groaned as she pulled back the sleeve of her robe and lowered her arm into the freezing water, causing goose bumps to erupt all over her skin. Clutching a seaweed tendril, Lily tugged hard, finally uprooting the whole plant and dragging it from the water. 

"You can stop laughing now," Lily frowned, glaring at Sirius and Vance. 

Her sleeve had slipped down into the water while she fetched the seaweed and came out soaking wet. 

"But I don't feel like it!" Sirius gasped, letting the fish net drop into the water with a splash.

Lily jumped back as droplets of dirty water landed on her already wet robes. Deciding that the only way she was going to be safe and dry, Lily backed away from the pond and returned to the mortar and pestle where Cinnamon was adding mint and basil to the mixture.

"You need to dice that into little tiny pieces," Cinnamon said, crushing the ingredients together. "The Professor gave me this for it."

She handed her a penknife. 

"I'm just going to get the amanita muscaria and oxalis acetosella," Cinnamon said, putting down the mortar and pestle as she stood up. "They're all the way over there."

She pointed to the other side of the garden.

"Right."

Lily diced the rubbery seaweed into tiny squares and added them to the fish food in the making. Picking up the pestle, she began pounding the plants together, gritting her teeth as she did.

"Having fun?" Cinnamon laughed, seating herself on the grass and dropping in a leafy stem with a white flower on the end and a reddish mushroom thing into the mortar as Lily crushed the items mercilessly. 

"Oh, yes," she answered, gagging at the poisonous green mush that was now in the bottom of the stone mortar.

"It's done," Cinnamon announced, looking up from the instructions. "You can stop killing it now."

Lily placed the mortar and pestle on the grass and looked up.

"What now?" she inquired, glancing around at the class. "Sirius and Vance are still cleaning the pond."

It was a rather funny sight to watch Sirius and Vance empty the pond of the grimy water. They had already scooped the poor fish from the water and plunged them into the bucket filled with fresh water. They had begun to use a second bucket, a larger one, to empty the pond of the dirty water. They then had to poor the water onto the grass, making sure it went on evenly. So quite naturally, with Sirius there, they were both soaked with the mucky water.

Sirius glimpsed over at the girls, an impish spark in his grey-blue eyes. With perfect aim, he threw a wave of icy water at Cinnamon and Lily, much to their utter disgust. 

__

"Sirius!" Lily hissed spitefully, glowering angrily at Sirius, who was laughing openly and loudly.

Cinnamon stood beside the pond, sulkily wringing out the saturated folds of the black robes. 

"What in Merlin's name has happened!"

Lily and Cinnamon swivelled round, facing their teacher with pink faces. Quimberly watched them with a stern eye, hands on her hips. 

"Ah…" 

Lily wasn't really sure what to say. It wasn't like she _wanted_ to dob Sirius in for what had done. 

"Professor," he said from behind the girls. "I was clearing out the pond and my hands slipped, wetting the girls from head to toe." Sirius put hid head down in mock shame. Lily and Cinnamon had to conceal their sniggers. "I'm sorry, Professor."

Professor Quimberly seemed to believe the story without question, returning to her normal bemused state. Her face relaxed and she lowered her arms.

"Very well," she said calmly, smiling a little. "Accidents happen. But I shall have to dry you two up won't I?"

Quimberly withdrew her wand from up her sleeve and pointed it at the girls with a smile. After she muttered a couple of words that Lily couldn't make out, the girls' robes instantaneously dried up, the creases made by the wringing vanished. 

"Thank you, Professor," Lily and Cinnamon said in unison, sighing with relief. 

"Now, I suggest you both run along to the Hospital Wing," Quimberly said, slipping her wand back where it came from. "You'll need a little draught of that Anti-Flu Potion stuff. It's nasty, but it works, dears."

"Um… Alright."

"Take your things, children. I won't need you back today. You both did a wonderful job on the fish food! It looks perfect! Now off you go!"

Lily and Cinnamon were ushered away from the class, listening to the protests of Vance and Sirius who were complaining that they needed to go get the Anti-Flu Potion. But Quimberly was powerfully pointing out that they hadn't completed their task.

"Hey, Tamara!" Lily called out to her friend, waving as she departed. "Meet you in Charms!"

Tamara, paired with James, waved energetically as Lily walked away, her book bag slung over her shoulders. James put on a cheesy grin and jiggled his hand frantically too, imitating Tamara rather badly. His punishment was a well aimed slap on the cheek.

"So, are you liking Hogwarts?" Lily said as they entered the castle by the front entrance.

"Oh, very much!" Cinnamon replied enthusiastically. "Are you?"

"It's fantastic!" Lily exclaimed just as eagerly, grinning. "Much better than a normal boarding school!"

"And it isn't even the end of day one!"

Cinnamon and Lily wandered the halls, vaguely keeping track of their path. Neither of them had any idea where the Hospital Wing was found, except for that it wasn't on the ground floor. In a time period of ten minutes, they had covered the first floor and were headed for the second once they located a staircase. But before the stairs were found, possible help ran into them. Literally.

"You should have seen my parents faces when I got the letter!" Cinnamon cried, brushing her long hair back. "They were _so_ shocked!"

"I was lucky," Lily admitted. "I had Tamara and her mum to explain."

"So, does Tam- Ack!"

"Ouch!"

"What the-!!"

Lily looked up from her place on the marble floor. She and Cinnamon were just turning a corner when a large, solid something collided with them both, knocking them to the ground gracelessly.

"I think I bruised my bum…" Lily moaned absently, rubbing her lower back. 

Cinnamon snorted gawkily from beside Lily. 

"Look, um… Sorry about that."  
Lily and Cinnamon rose their eyes to look at the very tall figure standing before them. A boy, about Sixth Year, had offered his hands to heave the girls up. He was chubby, with a mop of flyaway black hair and beady blue eyes. Lily and Cinnamon accepted the hands and pulled themselves to their feet, trying their best to look polite and ladylike.

"It's okay, really," Cinnamon said hurriedly, trying to fix her muddled hair.

"What are you doing in the halls during class?" the boy said casually, adjusting a silver 'Prefect' badge. 

"We can't find the Hospital Wing," Lily said quietly, tilting her head. 

"Could you tell us where it is?" Cinnamon added.

"It's on the third floor. Go up the stairs round the corner until you get to the second landing, go down the corridor on the left, turn right, and it should be over there."

"Thank you."

Lily and Cinnamon followed the boy's directions as correctly as they could remember. At the end, the two girls stood facing a glossy white door, a golden plaque engraved:

**__**

Hospital Wing

Madame Poppy Pomfrey Office

Lily knocked her knuckles neatly on the door. Before long, three seconds later in fact, the door was swung open. A fairly young matron stood in the doorway. She had a kind face of fair skin, free of any signs of aging. Her eyes were a light brown, and her hair the same colour. Her stature was willowy and small. 

"May I help you?" the lady, Poppy Pomfrey, asked gently, inviting them in. 

The room inside was long and thin. There were ten beds lined up along two opposite walls, made with clean, white linen. Only one bed was occupied with a sleeping somebody. At the other end of the room, there was a marked door, the writing in which Lily could not read from so far away.

"Professor Quimberly told us we needed to take some Anti-Flu Potion," Cinnamon informed, scanning the room with her brown eyes. 

"The _first_ day and I have to fetch it out," Madame Pomfrey mumbled, most likely to herself.

She bustled down the aisle between the rows of beds and into the door at the other end. Lily and Cinnamon hurried after her and waited patiently in silence outside the door. Madame Pomfrey came out a few minutes later, two goblets in hand. She handed one each to the girls.

"How come we've got different amounts?" Lily said curiously, sniffing the clear mixture, slightly tinted with green. It _smelt_ innocent enough. Whether it tasted that way though, was another story.

"The amount you are given depends on the size of your body," Madame Pomfrey thoughtfully clarified. "Now gulp it down, dears."

Lily closed her eyes and practically threw the potion into her open mouth. As Professor Quimberly had said, it was nasty. To Lily, it was downright foul. It tasted of strong pepper sauce and garbage with a medicine kick. Well, she had never tasted pepper sauce and garbage, but if she ever did taste it, she was sure it would have a flavour like that. Not wanting to, Lily swallowed it all, feeling it tickle her throat.

"Ugh! That is _horrible!"_ Cinnamon screeched, wiping her eyes.

"Keep it down, dears," Madame Pomfrey warned. "Is that all you came for?"

"Yes," Lily said, handing back the goblet. "Thank you. We'll be off now."

Cinnamon and Lily were shown to the door by the matron. Before they left, they asked for directions to the Charms corridor. 

"That stuff was truly the most disgusting, awful, terrible stuff in the whole wide world!" Cinnamon howled, making spitting sounds. "Sirius will _have_ to pay for that!"

"I _know!"_ Lily agreed stoutly, purposely swallowing to get rid of the biting taste in her mouth. "What are we going to do?"

"Have absolutely no idea!" Cinnamon piped, giggling. "Oh, look! We're here."

They had reached their Charms classroom without getting lost. As a bonus, they were early. Nobody was there yet, except for them. Another seven minutes and twenty-three seconds later, timed by Lily's watch, they were joined by two Hufflepuffs, Jennifer Bristow and Constance Cadwallader.

"Hi."

Jennifer Bristow stuck out a hand. She had thick, dark honey coloured hair and fairly bad acne across her long nose. Constance Cadwallader stood alongside her. Her dark face was framed by extremely curly hair, shortened as far as her pierced ears. 

"Hi," Cinnamon replied, shaking Jennifer's hand violently, grinning. "I'm Cinnamon and this is Lily."

Lily smiled at the two girls.

"My name's Jenny, (Jennifer really), and this is my friend Constance. Call her Connie."

"Hi, Jenny, Connie," Lily greeted in a friendly manner, shaking both their hands in turn politely.

"Hey, guess who?"

Lily squeaked as her vision went black and warm hands covered the top half of her face. She knew exactly who it was.

"Er… The Tooth Fairy?"

"That answer is… Incorrect," said the voice, belonging to a certain Tamara Scott. "The correct answer is Mrs Claus."

The hands came away from Lily's eyes and Tamara emerged from behind her. 

"Did you get lost?" Tamara asked cheerfully, humming the tune of 'Jingle Bells' to herself.

"Nope. We had directions from Madame Pomfrey."

"Pomfrey, Pomfrey, Pomfrey," Tamara chanted, twisting her mouth into a mangled frown. "Who's that?"

"The nurse," Cinnamon replied, twirling a lock of hair around her long finger. "She fed us _revolting_ stuff!"

"I thought _all_ medicines were yucky," Tamara stated, scratching her left eyebrow.

"Yes," Lily granted hastily. "But this stuff was _extra_ yuck."

"Oh…"

Lily, Tamara and Cinnamon stepped back swiftly as the door to the class opened slowly, squealing on its hinges a little. Lily had to hold back a gasp of surprise when she spotted the professor. Tamara didn't bother though. She gaped openly until Cinnamon nudged her in the ribs. 

"Come in, come in, class!" the petite man in the door squeaked, his voice high-pitched. 

Lily respectfully tried not to stare at the man. He was about as tall as Lily's stomach, or a little bigger, but not by much. The professor was young, perhaps in his early to mid twenties. His hair was a dark, peanut brown and his eyes, dark green. His robes were a baby blue and the hems embroidered with bright, yellow ducks. It was suspected that, because he was so short, the professor was only big enough to purchase robes that young children, as they were the only one's that would fit him without the sleeves hanging down to the floor.

Lily took a seat next to Tamara. Cinnamon went over to join Pepper at the front of the class. The professor waddled to the giant desk in front of the blackboard. He sat on a chair, piled with books so he could see over the desk. 

"Now, I am Professor Flitwick!" the man peeped. "Welcome to Charms class. I will take the role call, as I will every class this year."

Lily, who was very much hoping for an exciting lesson of turning someone's ears pink or making things fly, was rather disappointed when Professor Flitwick instructed them to read through _Chapter One: To Swish_ of 'A First Year's Guide to Charms' and then practising swishing and flicking their wands, performing no magic at all. 

"Maybe we'll learn to make people's feet grow gorilla hair next lesson," Tamara said optimistically, acting out a complicated twirl and powerful flick with her wand.

"You'll knock someone's head clean off their shoulders doing _that_!" Lily exclaimed, laughing giddily as Sirius got nicked on the arm with Tamara's wand. "And I don't think making people's feet grow gorilla hair is in the First Year curriculum."

"What a pity."

Punctually at noon, the end of class bell rang. The students hurriedly shoved books and wands into their bags, slinging them over their shoulders and stampeding through the door, which was in need of widening to fit the amount of bodies that went through it at once. Tamara and Lily, in a rush to reach the Great Hall in time, but not so desperate to viciously join the crowd in the halls, power walked together down the corridors, avoiding serious collisions.

"I think it will be easy finding the Great Hall this time!" Tamara said loudly, following a pair of boys that were laughing and jeering in front of them.

"Lunch must be a big thing here," Lily replied.

Lunch was divine. Whoever prepared the meals, Lily was more than willing to dish out awards to them. Sirius though, nearly ruined her appetite by constructing a sandwich consisting of pickles, sardines, mustard and shredded lettuce. He had pretended to love the taste of the purely ludicrous combination of ingredients, but after two bites, spat out the remnants of chewed up sardine tails and soggy bread onto his plate and gulped down two goblets of pumpkin juice while all the First Years and a few other students looked on in distaste. 

"Your breath smells _gross_," Tamara openly confessed, speaking to Sirius in revulsion.

"Oh, really?" he said calmly.

Deliberately, he walked right up to her and breathed long and slow in her face. Tamara was engulfed in his putrid breath instantly. Immediately, she backed away, coughing and spitting.

"Ergh!! You are horrible and disgusting, Sirius! _How_ does your family put up with you!"

"What do you mean? I'm a perfect angel," Sirius replied in a saccharine voice. 

Tamara would have answered sourly, but Professor McGonagall was waiting for them at the Transfiguration classroom. She stood to her full height, which was rather tall. She was the portrait of organisation, rules, obedience and strictness. Her robes, a poisonous green colour and made from velvet, were devoid of creases and crinkles and weakly scented with some sort of laundry detergent. Her hat was brand new by the look of it, a fresh, tidy black and still neatly pointed at the top. McGonagall's glasses sat comfortably on her perfectly shaped nose.

"Please enter orderly and quietly and take a seat," she said briskly, nodding to every student as they passed her into the classroom. 

Lily bit her lips nervously as she passed the formidable teacher. All the seats in the back row were taken already when she entered. It seemed that no one was game enough to risk sitting in the front row, right in front of the teacher's large oak desk, where papers and quills had proper places of their own. The centre row was nearly full. Lily, followed by Tamara, took the last two chairs left in the line of desks, leaving everyone else the front. 

Like robots, every student present dove for their bags, taking out necessary equipment: a quill, ink, parchment, their wand and Transfiguration books. In a muted and tense quietness, they waited for McGonagall to finish roll call, then her complicated introduction to Transfiguration, in which began the scratching and scribbling of quills upon parchment, noting down everything the commanding professor dictated. 

"Our very first assignment of the year will be the changing of a match into a needle," McGonagall said dauntingly, her beady eyes sweeping over the class like a hawk's. "Upon the board I shall write out the essential rules of Beginner's Transfiguration. You will copy these notes down. With these and the information provided by your books and research if you choose to do, you will each construct an essay on how _you_ expect to complete the first assignment. You will have until Wednesday to do so. On Thursday, we will attempt the assignment."

Quickly and stealthily, McGonagall picked up a piece of white chalk from her desk and began writing in a slanted handwriting the vital rules of Beginner's Transfiguration. Lily, unused to using a quill as yet, wrote slowly and tidily. She often smudged what she had just written, much to her frustration, as she had to write the same thing above the smudges in smaller letters. It was after twenty-eight minutes, behind everyone else, that she finally finished. After that, Lily wiped her inky hands on her black robes and began reading the first chapter of the text book, which proved to be actually interesting. 

It was lucky that they had History of Magic after Transfiguration on that Monday. They were all late out of class with no clue of which way to go. The History of Magic teacher, lucky for them, was one who had no sense of time and punctuality. He was a ghost that had been dead for around three decades now and usually popped into class ten minutes late. 

The Gryffindor First Year's arrived, twelve minutes after they were suppose to, but there wasn't a professor in sight. Awkwardly, they seated themselves at various desks in the dusty class and waited, listening to Sirius and James tell odd stories about what they did as young children. Three minutes later, just after Cinnamon had opened up a window to let a bit of fresh air to blow the dust away, the professor flew into the classroom, startling them all. 

Most of the girls shrieked and the boys flew backwards with their chairs. It was a funny sight, but Professor Binns seemed not to notice at all. In a bored, dull drone, he began talking.

"I am Professor Binns, your teacher. Take out writing equipment please. You will be writing down notes on my speeches. Our first will be about the Goblin Rebellion of 1202."

History of Magic was utterly dreary and tedious. The hour seemed to drag on forever, going slower than it had ever gone before. Binns spoke in drear manner with an expressionless ghostly face. Only three of the twelve Gryffindors had enough will power to stay sane and conscious, Remus, Lily and Cinnamon. They were occasionally jotting down notes as they rested their heads on the desk like everyone else. 

As Lily's watch struck 4:00, the school bell promptly rang loudly. Without Binns needing to dismiss them, the class packed up their things in a flurry, then whizzed out through the door like there was no tomorrow. There was now two and a half hours of free time before dinner. Casually, Tamara, Cassidy, Cinnamon and Lily ventured in the direction they belived to be the Gryffindor Common Room, while everyone else rushed ahead.

"This is going to be _so_ fun!" Cinnamon exclaimed, grinning. "No maths!"

Lily, Tamara and Cassidy laughed giddily. 

"It must have been very boring living as a Muggle before you came here," Cassidy said, wrinkling her nose as she swiped some hair out of her face. 

"Oh, but it can interesting too!" Tamara burst in happily. "Like the books they write! They can be so funny! They write about witches and magic and stuff and they get it so _wrong_!"

They're friendly chat continued while they walked where their feet took them. Twenty five minutes later, however, they had the common sense to take in their surroundings. It was then they realised they were well and truly lost, having broken apart from everyone else. 

Lily, boiling with excitement and anticipation, looked around the passage they were in. There were large arch windows along the right side of the hall, spilling in the afternoon sun that lighted up the corridor a little. All the walls were bare, there was not a single hanging portrait, or even brackets to hold candles to brighten the evening darkness. There was little warmth. Only the sun that would be soon gone. 

As the four girls discussed what way they were to take as they admired the view of the black lake below, four pairs of eyes watched them.


	4. Green as a Goblin With a Pink Bow

****

Authors Note: I'm awfully sorry the appalling speed I have adopted. Three weeks, it'll be the summer holidays. FINALLY! If I don't get five chapters of any story up in that time, I shall be very angry with myself. Thank you SO much to people that review this story. I love people who leave a comment, whether it be bad or good! And the fifth book is supposed to be coming out in about 6 months or so! Yes!!!!

****

Disclaimer: Everything that belongs to JKR and has been mentioned within the amazing books of Harry Potter is very muchly not mine. 

****

Sweet Lily

__

Chapter Four: Green as a Goblin With a Pink Bow

Peter Pettigrew was lonely. He had never been popular with anyone his whole life. When he came to Hogwarts, however, people talked to him. The three boys, Remus, James and Sirius had been relatively friendly to him on the train the day before. And today, he had followed them around the school. Right now he was crouched behind a suit of armour somewhere in Hogwarts, listening to Remus, James and Sirius chatter quietly about a metre away. Peter couldn't see them of course. An Invisibility Cloak concealed them. But he knew where they were because they never stopped talking. Talking about some prank to frighten the beejeebies out of four girls they had been stalking since History of Magic. 

The four girls were lost, it seemed. They stood together, talking as they stared out of a large, arched window where the lake could be spotted. Peter recognised the girls as Lily Evans, Tamara Scott, Cinnamon something, and Cassidy something else. He sighed heavily and leant back against the wall. His movement caused an invisible cloud of dust to arise. Peter felt his nose tickle, ready to sneeze. He was going to sneeze. He couldn't stop it. One. Two. Three…

"Achoo!"

The girls swivelled round speedily, facing empty air with confused expressions. Remus, Sirius and James froze in the places and shut their mouths for a second.

"What'd you sneeze for, James?" Sirius hissed under his breath, shuffling to the left.

His two companions copied his move; slowly moving towards the left wall so the girls wouldn't bump into them. 

"It wasn't me, Sirius!"

"Nor me," Remus piped up quietly, staying close to James and Sirius.

There was another sneeze from the same direction. Loud and distinguishable, it was. 

"Who's there?" Tamara called out blindly, walking towards Remus, James and Sirius where they stood as still as boulders planted in the dirt.

Lily was a little shaken at the moment. It was their first day and someone was stalking them! Was Hogwarts _safe_? 

"We're extremely talented in curses and all! We could curse you til your bums drop off!" Tamara cried out, her arms outstretched, feeling the empty air.

Lily raised her eyebrows at Tamara's flattering comment, nearly laughing a little. Someone to the left of the corridor sniggered loudly, causing Tamara to bound in that direction like a bunny rabbit. Instantly, she ran into something solid, knocking whatever it was to the ground with an outrageous cry.

Cinnamon, Cassidy and Lily watched with interest as James, Sirius and Remus' heads appeared suddenly, each wearing expressions of bafflement, uncomfortableness and frustration. Tamara, sitting comfortably upon the boys, was happy to have found the criminals.

"Gotcha!" she wailed triumphantly, punching the air.

"What are you three _doing _here?" Cassidy asked, folding her arms across her chest. 

"We were following Sirius' pet toad. He ran away," James answered immediately, nodding his head pointedly.

"Sirius and Remus exchanged agreeable looks with each other. Tamara wasn't satisfied at all.

"He doesn't have a pet toad, idiots."

"Course he does!" James piped. 

"Since when?"

"Since he was just a little toddler in itsy bitsy diapers!"

Sirius nudged James powerfully in the ribs in reply to his statement. Cinnamon, Cassidy and Lily was merely the audience to watch the scene unfold, humouring them all, as was Peter, tucked away behind the dusty suit of armour.

"Whatever. I can't believe you sneezed! I thought you'd be more careful, Sirius!" Tamara said, changing the subject abruptly.

"I swear!" Sirius replied forcefully. "It wasn't us!"

"Right. Then who was it?" Tamara demanded to know.

This was Peter's cue to come out. He was getting sick of sitting there doing nothing anyway. He crept out from his hiding place, letting Remus and James spot him.

"Peter, buddy ol' pal!" James said, waving for him to come over. "What are you hiding for?"

"Ah…" 

Peter cursed himself. He wasn't half as good as these boys at making up stories to protect himself!

"I- I don't know."

"Doesn't matter," Remus said, smiling.

It was only a small improvement to his pallid skin and sickly form.

"It was you who sneezed, wasn't it?"

"Um… Yeah. Sorry."

"What's to be sorry about?" Sirius asked gleefully, showing no disappointment that it was Peter who caused him to be found out. "You haven't ruined anything, Peter."

"Now that you are here," Cinnamon said from behind Tamara. "But do you know the way back to the Common Room?"

"Sure we do!" James said, heaving himself up from the ground.

Peter managed to spot that he was trying to keep something hidden from the girls. He had covered whatever it was with the Invisibility Cloak and had it in his hands behind his back.

Lily eyed James suspiciously as he walked up to the girls calmly. She had no reason to believe that he was up to no good, but there was just something about his impish smile… James, swiftly and as quickly as he could, spun the large bucket around to his front, sloshing green liquid onto the floor. Tamara, Lily, Cinnamon and Cassidy stepped back when they saw the green stuff, but not far enough. James hauled the bucket at them, emptying it of the liquid.

"Eeeeeaaaarrrrrrrggghhh!!"

Lily stood, gasping loudly, her mouth wide open and staring at James and Sirius' laughing faces. Remus and Peter though, were not laughing so hard. Peter was smiling with his hand over his mouth and Remus was laughing a little, seemingly unsure whether to hastily disguise it as a cough, and ended up with a coarse giggle. 

The vision was extremely funny. Cassidy, Cinnamon, Lily and Tamara were soaked with a horrible green dye that had already stained their skin, clothes and hair, much to their fury. Cassidy's hair, blonde to start with, was now a very dark and noticeable green, as was Cinnamon and Lily's hair, but not quite to the extent as Cassidy's. Tamara's hair, though, was dark enough to mask the green. Surrounding them was a deep green puddle from where the dye had missed them and where the excess liquid was dripping from their robes.

"YOU OBNOXIOUS SODS! I WAS _VERY_ WRONG WHEN I ACTUALLY _BELIEVED_ YOU TWO COULD ATTEND HOGWARTS _WITHOUT_ CAUSING ANY TROUBLE!" Tamara roared furiously, her eyes flashing dangerously from one guilty face to the next. "You wait til I tell your mothers' about this! You'll never hear the end of it! You'll be grounded from now til the end of the _universe_!"

"Oi! Tamara, you don't have to go tattle on us to our parents!" Sirius protested, finally coming to a halt from laughter. "This is between us, not our parents who are far away now! You know my mum will make me help her with the gardening and cooking and cleaning and everything!"

"Look at what you have _done_ to us!" Cassidy yelled, raising her arms to prove a point.

This just made the boys' laugh harder and louder than before, looking at the green girls through squinted eyes. 

"Do you know where the Common Room is?" Lily inquired as politely as she could without losing her temper. She was breathing heavily and deeply.

"Yeah. We'll take you."

Thankfully, the boys did lead them to the Common Room without any detours to torture them with more of their pranks or ideas. Though, they did pass a lot of students walking through the halls that giggled behind their hands and pointed at them, sniggering mercilessly. It was another twenty minutes before they reached the portrait of the Fat Lady.

"Oh my!" she gasped when she saw the girls, saturated with green dye. "What on earth happened to you four?"

"They happened," Cinnamon scowled, gesturing to Sirius, James, Remus and Peter, who were still chuckling.

"Causing trouble already? You four had better get used to detention if you're to continue this… behaviour! Girls, I suggest a long, hot shower with lots of soap! Password?"

"Hot Chocolate."

Cassidy, Cinnamon, Lily and Tamara looked down at the carpet as they entered Gryffindor Tower, receiving gasps, titters and other signs of amusement. Ignoring the attention, they immediately ventured to the First Year Girls' Showers to attempt to wash away the stains.

Lily scrubbed her skin as hard as she had ever done in her life until her skin ached and felt raw. The wizard soap seemed to take away a fraction of the greenness, but it was still visibly there, within her hair and skin. Tamara could be heard cursing and growling, her temper lost long ago. Cinnamon was a little calmer about the whole situation. She thought it very funny that they were green, but was still humiliated by it all. Cassidy was angry, but not so much as Tamara was. She was frenzied by the fact that they might remain green forever.

"We need to ask a teacher to make us normal again," Cassidy proposed once they were all out of the showers. 

"Madame Pomfrey will help us!" Cinnamon suggested, nodding her head confidently. 

At first, Tamara protested, feeling humiliated to walk amid the other Gryffindors. In the end, Lily managed to convince her that she would have to face them anyway. If she refused to go to class, McGonagall would be on her tail and probably drag her through the school to the Headmaster, making more of a fool of her than now.

"Twice in one day!" Madame Pomfrey exclaimed the first moment she saw Cinnamon and Lily at the door of the Hospital Wing.

The two girls exchanged small, guilty smiles with each other before explaining what had happened to them.

"You see, we were walking back from History of Magic-"

"-We were lost-"

"-And these _insolent,_ stupid, daft, obnoxious, self-centred, _fools_-"

"-Some idiots drowned us in-"

"-This green _slime_-"

"-It stained us, see?"

"And we can't get it off-"

"-We tried _everything_-"

"We were just wondering whether you could turn us back to our normal colours?"

Madame Pomfrey beckoned them further down the ward, thinking silently to herself. 

"It depends what brand of dye," she admitted ponderously. "Yindigg's Colour Stain is fairly simple to remove, but The Tyrant's Best No-Removal Bye is rather complicated and can always leave you tinged slightly for the rest of your life. But as a student did this, it would most likely be Long-Lasting Prankster Colour, which I reveal, does not really last that long."

The nurse's knowledge of colour dyes and whether they came off or not personally amazed Lily. Cinnamon and Cassidy were also, but Tamara hadn't changed in moods for a long time. She still remained furious with James, Sirius, Remus and Peter, even though Peter didn't have anything to do with the prank. 

"It will just take a simple test to see which one you've been drenched with. A very accurate drink I created five years ago while I was still studying Healing and Medicine."

Leaving the four girls lingering outside her office, Madame Pomfrey disappeared for a few minutes, arriving back with four very small goblets filled with a liquid that resembled apple juice.

"Just throw that into your mouths, shake your head around and spit the liquid back into the cup," Madame Pomfrey instructed, nodding her head as she handed them each a goblet.

Lily and Cinnamon, for the second time that day, accepted liquid from Madame Pomfrey. Hoping that it didn't taste half as bad as the stuff she swallowed before, Lily threw the drink into her mouth. It tasted exactly like apple juice, to her utter surprise. Though, there was a hint of lemon juice within the sweetness. Lily shook her head around feeling silly then spat the now 

tasteless drink into the goblet. The original clear, yellow-orange colour had disappeared from the liquid and had turned into a pinkish-red colour with a hint of blue.

Yet again, Madame Pomfrey vanished into her office, taking the goblets with her. She returned with a two-litre bottle of what appeared to be water.

"This is the antidote. It was Long-Lasting Prankster Colour. Just tip about two capfuls of this stuff into the bath with no added bubble mixture. Put the two together and you'll turn orange for a week before it washes off completely. Anyway, bathe for about half an hour and you'll be back to normal. With the rest of it, put your clothes in an enlarged bucket with whatever is left of this stuff and the rest, water. Soak for a day and the green will be left in the wash water. Any questions?"

Each girl shook their head then headed off with the bottle to the Gryffindor Girls Baths. Each dorm had there own toilet and showers, but the whole house shared baths, split between girls and boys.

"Why didn't you tell her that it was the boys that turned us green?" Lily asked Tamara as they received a snigger and a laugh from two Slytherin girls.

"Ugh!" Tamara answered, very frustrated at the moment. "Because I never tattle on them! I'll just make them let me help with their next five pranks. That won't make them happy."  
"You're too soft," Cassidy remarked, frowning.

"Maybe. But they _hate_ people besides themselves helping with their tricks and whatnot."

"We know where we're going, don't we?" Lily interrupted. "I don't fancy getting lost twice in one day!"

"Oh, we're not lost," Cinnamon said calmly, smiling. "I left a trail. See?"

Tamara, Cassidy and Lily peered over Cinnamon's shoulder in awe. Going right down the hall and turning left round a corner was a trail of small, golden sparks, flickering brilliantly in the candle light.

"You're so smart!" Tamara cried joyously. "We're going to live!"

Ten minutes later after following the fading trail of golden sparkles, they were faced with the Fat Lady for who knows what time that day.

"Hot Chocolate."

"Delicious and sweet drink, that is. Absolutely beautiful topped with whipped cream, few bits of chocolate with marshmallows hiding under the cream! Simply lovely!" the Fat Lady said in response to the password.

"Cream is foul!" Cinnamon grimaced. "I much prefer marshmallows piled high with sprinkles and a chocolate stick stuck in it all."

"Hot chocolate is yuck, full stop," Cassidy said, pretending to throw up.

"I think the Fat Lady has got the idea of a perfect hot chocolate! Gosh, yummy!" Lily exclaimed, licking her lips with a dreamy expression. "What I would give for one right now."

"You won't have to wait that long, dearie," the Fat Lady remarked kindly. "At eight each evening, all the perfect ingredients to make an equally perfect hot chocolate are set out on the table in the corner next to the boys dormitories."

"Really?" Tamara insisted. "How do you know?"

"I have very keen ears, children, very keen ears."

The Fat Lady swung open and the four girls clambered into the Common Room, earning a few stares. Without bothering to purposely stare back at the onlookers, they entered the Gryffindor Girls Baths Room. Everything from the walls, floor and ceiling were tiled. Along the walls were enlarged cubicles, exactly like those found on public toilets, except larger. In turn, they poured the amount of the dye removal into each of their baths and began soaking themselves in separate cubicles.

**********

Cassidy shook the bottle of what was left of the dye removal. The girls had gathered all their clothing that was stained by the dye, and had piled it into a large bucket, then soaking it all with tap water. The only thing left to do was adding the dye removal and let it be for twenty-four hours. However, Cassidy had other ideas.

"It seems a pity," she said, in a slow deliberate voice, "That we have to use _all_ of this on our clothes. Would a little less of it make a difference, you think?"

"I suppose not," Tamara said, chewing her bottom lip thoughtfully. "Madame Pomfrey _did_ say what was left would do. And there's no saying how much she meant."

"Exactly. So, maybe if we just added a little less than we originally intended to, it wouldn't affect our clothes at all," Cassidy said.

"But what are we supposed to use the leftover stuff for?" Lily inquired curiously.

"Revenge is sweet!" Cinnamon burst out excitedly. "Of course!"

"We'll just slip a little of this into their shampoos while Tamara is convincing them to let her in on some of their tricks, and when they wash their hair, it'll turn orange for a week! That's if shampoo is some type of bubble mixture," Cassidy added happily.

"I'd say it is," Cinnamon said. "It'll be wonderful to see their hair orange. But to get into their dormitories is going to be hard."

"Can we do it now?"

"Wait."

Cassidy opened the bottle of dye removal and added three-quarters of the contents into the bucket with their clothes. 

**********

"We'd like a quick chat with you, if you don't mind."

"In _private_."

"Your dormitories, _now_."

"Come along, slow coaches."

"Oy! Wait! What do you think you're doing!" Sirius protested, but the girls had already begun the climb up the stairs to the Boys' Dormitories.

Remus, James, Sirius and Peter (the other three had pretty much adopted him now) rushed after the girls, muttering about forbidden places and bossy people. 

"_What_ are you doing?" James demanded, entering the threshold of the First Year Boys' Dormitories to find each girl seated comfortably on _his_ bed.

"Making ourselves relatively comfy, thank you very much," Tamara snapped. "Because we _knew_ you people wouldn't offer us a seat to save you lives."

"They know us too well, James," Lily heard Sirius whisper into James' ear.

"Anyway," Tamara went on, "We thought it might be kind of you to let us in on… say… three of your next tricks on innocent people. You know, just 'coz you got us with the green stuff."

Sirius and James in particular didn't take this proposal very well. They didn't begin screaming and yelling either though. They just raised their eyebrows and stood gaping at the four girls who all wore an expression of amusement. Peter and Remus were a little less insulted. Their eyebrows raised to the heavens and eyes turned to James and Sirius.

Cassidy was in an extremely bossy mood. "You do realise you have no choice."

Lily watched four pairs of eyes widen to the size of small saucers. In her opinion, they were very weird boys. They were nice, yes, and annoying sometimes, and plain spiteful other times, but very, very weird. 

"Being green wasn't _that_ bad, was it?" Remus questioned, tilting his head to the left.

"It was the most humiliating thing that has happened to me," Cassidy replied, scowling

Hearing her admit this, James and Sirius began to snigger and giggle. 

"Okay. We'll let you," Sirius announced after his and James little giggle tournament. "Two only, though."

"Three."

"Two."

"Three!"

"Two and a half."

"Two and a half?" 

"Excuse me?" Lily said quietly. "Could I please use your bathroom?"

While Sirius, James, Cassidy, Tamara, Peter and Cinnamon sorted out the pay back arrangements, Remus lead her through to the First Year Boys Bathroom, showing her the direction to the toilets. She thanked him and entered a cubicle, locking the door quietly.

Lily waited til she heard Remus close the door with a snap before she set the plan into action. Instead of just unlocking the door, Lily got down on her stomach and crept through the large opening between the blue tiled floor and the door. She knew that if someone came to get her and looked under the door, there would be no feet to prove her innocence. 

The room was very much like the First Year Girls' Bathroom. Long and narrow lined with toilets, showers and basins. At the end of the room were ten cabinets. Not all the cabinets were always full of bits and pieces. Each student in the dormitory got a cabinet to themselves to keep their personal toiletries in. Luckily for Lily, they weren't kept under key and lock.

Lily tiptoed across the tiles, pausing to peep through the crack between the door and wall, just to check no one was coming. Each party was occupied with the other. Silently, she continued towards the small, white cabinets. It was easy to tell which ones she would have to invade. In the corner of each one were the initials of a different boy. Four of the boxes were unmarked.

Lily pulled a miniature glass vial out of her pocket within her robes and opened the first cupboard reading '_SB_' in very curly letters, hardly readable. This was Sirius' cupboard. Lily nearly shrieked with fright from what she first spotted in the small space where Sirius kept his stuff. On the top shelf, next to a pyramid of yellow bricks of soap, was a tiny jar, holding a furry spider. Lily was terrified of spiders.

Noting that the spider was trapped in the jar, Lily went on with her mission, searching for shampoo. The top shelf was where the soap and spider were. On the second shelf was a dark blue toothbrush, five tubes of 'Extra Extra And a Little Bit More Extra Frothy Toothpaste: Hot Mint Flavour', five cans of deodorant and a comb. The third shelf was empty. Lily let out a tiny shriek of frustration. _Doesn't he wash his hair? It's long enough! Maybe it's in one of the showers…_

Closing the cupboard as quickly and noiselessly as possible, Lily moved onto Peter's cabinet, proposing to investigate the showers a little later. The contents of Peter's cabinet were a tad less interesting than Sirius'. There was, like Sirius, a pile of soap for the year, a few tubes of toothpaste ('Ducks Chocolate Flavoured, Special Whitening Toothpaste'), a toothbrush, a few cans of deodorant, a brush and _shampoo_.

Lily flipped the lid of the shampoo bottle and placed it on the edge of the shelf to make it easier to reach. She then opened the vial of clear liquid and with careful agility, poured one quarter into the shampoo bottle. Lily slipped the glass container into her pocket, snapped the shampoo lid closed and gave the bottle a gentle shake before replacing it to its original position and moving onto Remus' cabinet.

Each boy kept similar things: a years supply of soap, deodorant and toothpaste, toothbrush, a comb or hairbrush and shampoo. After Lily had emptied three quarters of the dye removal into Peter's Remus' and James' shampoo bottles, she began hunting for Sirius' shampoo in the showers.

They were still damp from the morning and quite a bit slippery too. The first shower stall was bare, except for a slimy bar of scented soap. Lily moved onto the second and found what she was looking for. Shampoo! Making sure not to slip and bash her head in, Lily crouched down and emptied the dye removal into the shampoo, pleased, and slightly guilty, with herself. After she unlocked the toilet door and let herself out, she couldn't help but notice that in the third shower there was another bottle of shampoo. 

**********

The deal was done. Sirius, James, Peter and Remus were to let Lily, Tamara, Cinnamon and Cassidy 'assist', as James called it, with two of their next tricks, which both happened to be on poor Severus Snape. The boys had developed a grudge against the Slytherin ever since they stepped off the train. It wasn't that Lily like Severus Snape, but one had to feel sympathetic towards anyone who was going to be forced to put up with all the trouble the boys were going to hurl at him. 

Dinner that night was a relaxing affair. Already, only one day into the school year, Lily had settled into her new group of friends and classmates. Cassidy had invited her brother and sister, Aimee and Blake, to sit at the Gryffindor table fro dinner. They brought along their newfound friends, Dahlia Zing, Blythe Matheson and Samson Beattie. 

"Lily, can you pass the sausages please?"

Obligingly she did so, delivering the large platter of sausages to Remus. 

That evening in the Common Room, Lily wrote a letter to her parents on some special scented parchment Tamara had given her.

__

To Mum, Dad and Petunia,

It's absolutely fabulous here! Hogwarts is a giant castle! I'm sorry I didn't write to you earlier. I was going to 

last night, but I fell asleep too soon. Tamara gave me this parchment. It smells like vanilla! 

I started classes today. First I had Herbology. My friend Cinnamon and I made fish food from scratch and then these two boys, Sirius and Vance soaked us. They were cleaning the fishpond and they wet us. We had to go to the Hospital Wing for some medicine so we wouldn't get colds. Then we had Charms. We just learnt to swish and flick our wands when performing spells. Then Lunch and Transfiguration. Then History of Magic. That was rather boring, but I tried to pay attention. Then we got lost on our way back to the Common Room and got lost and these boys dyed us green! It's all right. The nurse gave us some stuff to make us normal again.

Tonight we have Astronomy at midnight. The food here is delicious too. Just ask Sirius and James. Every time you mention food they lick their lips or rub their stomachs or something. 

I am sending this with my new friend, Pepper's owl. The owl's name is Twinkles. Pepper tells me Twinkles will wait for you to reply, then you just give the letter to her and she will deliver it to me. It's strange getting used to all this. But very fun! 

Love from,

Lily 

Guided by Pepper, Lily rolled the parchment up, tied a piece of string around it and gave it to Twinkles the owl. Twinkles clasped the string with her long talons and disappeared through the window, into the night.

In a corner of the Common Room, Sirius, James, Remus, Peter, Cinnamon, Cassidy and Tamara had gathered, aided with a few overstuffed armchairs, a chessboard, quills and parchment. Lily went over and seated herself next to Cassidy. She moved, however, onto the floor when Remus invited her to a game of chess. He went about explaining the rules and how to play the wizards chess and they began while the next two tricks were schemed. 

"I have a vision!" Sirius exclaimed dramatically. "Of Snape as a little pink bunny rabbit with a bow around his neck!"

Tamara was amused, but realistic. "Yes, very funny, Sirius. Fantastic idea. But how do you suppose we do that? We're _first years_ into our _first_ day of school."

Sirius frowned with disappointment, but brightly added, "Well, we'll do it another day, won't we?"

It was Cassidy's turn to roll her eyes. "More like another _year_. We don't start human transfiguration til about fifth year."

"Checkmate."

Lily widened her eyes. "How do you do that? You beat me twice now."

"It's just in the way you direct the pieces," Remus said smugly, then adding off-handedly, "Or it could be that my dad taught me well."

"The last one is more believable," Lily said, smiling as the reset the chessboard for another match. "How's the prank brainstorm coming along?"

"Ugh," she answered dully, looking at Lily. "Sirius and James are impossible. They seem to think that they can do absolutely _anything_. But we don't learn half of it til fifth year or something ridiculous like that! They don't know reality from fantasy."

Lily laughed out loud, and even more so when Tamara gave her an exasperated glare. 

"And you go through the torture while I play chess and lose every time. I feel I got the good end of the deal."

As the night wore on, the Common Room slowly emptied until it was only the first years left wandering around in a sleepy doze, waiting to head up to the Astronomy Tower for class at midnight. Tamara managed to convince the boys to start small with their tricks, and they had finally understood why. Two days from then, they were going to somehow get some potion onto Severus Snape that would make him break out in ugly boils over his skin. Thankfully it was a potion taught in first year. The second prank, however, was undecided upon. 

At eleven thirty, the first years departed from Gryffindor Tower in search of the Astronomy Tower. They were in a tight bunch, wandering through the darkened halls in their slippers and dressing gowns, shivering in the cold night air. They found the Astronomy Tower fairly simply, as it was close to the Common Room. When they arrived, they had ten minutes to spare.

Lily and Cinnamon stood by the large, arch window, quivering from the icy breeze. After two minutes, they finally couldn't take the cold any more, stepped back, rubbing their hands together fiercely to warm their blue faces. 

"Up! Now! On the roof!"

The whole class jumped in surprise. A woman had entered the tower while they weren't watching and was tugging at a string on the ceiling. She was middle height and was quite portly and plump, notably around the middle. Her hair, dark brown and curly, was pulled up on top of her head, secured in a ponytail. She wore a knitted scarf around her neck coloured black and blue with violet tassels. 

A stepladder suddenly fell through the roof, landing with a loud clack on the stone floor. 

"Come on! One at a time! Up there!" the professor barked, gripping the ladder.

Clumsily, Lily climbed the ladder, her legs trembling from both the chill and fright from meeting her fiery Astronomy professor. Outside on top of the tower, the frozen wind blew hard, pushing against her body forcefully, blowing her hair into disarray and knotting the red curls. The frosty weather was numbing. Everyone's faces were pale and blue with teeth chattering uncontrollably, attempting to heat up by rubbing their hands and arms or pulling their dressing gowns tighter to their skin.

If Lily wasn't so cold and shivery, she could have been more observant and grateful of the startlingly marvellous view of the Hogwarts Grounds and the Forbidden Forest. The new moon glowed brilliantly in the black sky, white stars dotting the horizon. Down below, dimmed by the darkness, was the Quidditch Field. The tall, golden hoops were nearly invisible. The forest was merely a pure black area that stretched further than the eye could see, past the castle grounds. 

Lily and Tamara stood together at one end of the tower. It was a large, circular area with the trapdoor into the room below in the centre. The tower was made from huge grey stone bricks, about forty centimetres thick. There was a metre high barrier surrounding the platform. In a small area, several telescopes and things were sitting, recently polished. 

The professor appeared through the trapdoor, heaving herself onto the top of the tower in a not-so-graceful, but quick way. She stood up, slammed the door shut and faced the class.

"I'll say this once, not twice," she said sternly, but more softly than the way she was talking before. "I am Professor Eyton. I expect my students to arrive in class prepared and ready to act like their age. If you choose not to, I will not hesitate at all to give you a detention. Now that that's over with, _carefully_ grab a telescope between a group of three. If you can't choose the groups yourselves, I'll do it for you. Now!"

Rather startled by the tone of voice used, the Gryffindors formed four groups of three within twenty seconds, too afraid to see what would happen if they disobeyed Professor Eyton's orders. 

Lily was in a group with Tamara and Basil Hawkins. He was rather tall with a head of curly orange hair that flopped sweetly over his eyes. He was constantly brushing it away out of his eyes, but it always came back. 

The hour that they were on top of the tower, the children froze and were deafened by Professor Eyton's sharp, demanding voice that pierced the calming sounds of the wind whistling and the quiet chatter of the students. They learnt about the three brightest stars that night. How they were discovered and how far away they were from the earth above other various things. 

It was that night, Lily slept more deeply and soundly than she ever had before. Tiredness seemed to take over her whole entire body like a tidal wave, sending her to sleep for the night.


End file.
